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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24516187">Garden of Sin</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/kmvb/pseuds/kmvb'>kmvb</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Wynonna Earp (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, F/M, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 07:53:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>48,649</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24516187</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/kmvb/pseuds/kmvb</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“I can’t lose anyone else I love today,” Waverly choked as wet crocodile tears traced her cheeks.</p><p>“Well, it’s a good Champ evacuated with the rest of the city.” The sheriff sighed. She yanked her hand from the youngest Earp’s face as if her skin burned.</p><p>“What? Oh, Champ, right,” Waverly reached forward, clutching the other woman’s palm. “Nicole, there’s something I need to tell you. Something I have been hiding from you. Nicole, I am in-”</p><p>In the Garden of Eden, Waverly Earp, a woman destroyed by the loss of her newfound father, becomes trapped in paradise alongside Sheriff Nicole Haught. False hallucinations torment the duo, tearing at their insecurities to trick them into releasing demons into the Ghost River Triangle. Waverly and Nicole must outsmart figures from their past without sacrificing their own lives while juggling their hidden romantic feelings for one another.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jeremy Chetri/Robin Jett, Waverly Earp/Champ Hardy, Waverly Earp/Nicole Haught</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>211</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>300</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. I Write Sins not Tragedies</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey everyone! It's been a bit! </p><p>This is the story that I wrote during NaNoWriMo 2019 (yes that is how long it takes me to post). This is what I would call a scene redirect (I might be making that up, but who knows), as in I took a scene from the actual Earp Universe, tweaked a few different things, and ran with it. In this case, I said what would happen if Waverly was still with Champ, and it was Nicole who followed her into the garden instead of Doc. And this is what my mind came up with.</p><p>Hope you enjoy! I have fought with this one for several months saying its just not good enough to post, but I'm hoping I am wrong.</p><p>Seriously, grab some popcorn (and possibly some tissues).</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 1</p>
<p>“Officer Haught?” Julian shrieked as his eyes found Doc Holliday carrying the wounded warrior toward them.</p>
<p>“Oh my god Nicole.” Wynonna bellowed, rushing to her best friend’s side as the vampire set her on the barn floor. </p>
<p>“Go get Waverly,” She commanded. </p>
<p>The cowboy rolled his eyes and huffed in stubbornness. “I am not permitted in the house.” </p>
<p>“Well you are permitted now,” She yelled in frustration. “She’s all alone.”</p>
<p>Julian looked into Wynonna’s hurt, watery eyes. “I can fix this.”</p>
<p>“Good,” Hope floated through her for the first time in three years. “This is the love of your daughter’s life; she’s just too stuck inside her own head to realize it.”</p>
<p>Julian kneeled next to Nicole, quickly searching for a pulse. “There will be a price to pay.”</p>
<p>“There always is,” Wynonna and Doc repeated at the same time. She glared over at the vampire, wondering why he had yet to go get her sister.</p>
<p>Julian raised the young officer’s uniform and slid his frigid, pasty hands on her faltering stomach. Using his strength, Julian emitted all his power and magic. Little by little, Nicole’s large laceration healed, the scar burning bright red before ceasing to appear.</p>
<p>“Stay with her.” Julian commanded. He braced his hand on the ground and used all his remaining force to stand to his full height. “I’ll go get Waverly.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nicole’s okay.” Julian’s told her, desperately trying to catch her breath. </p>
<p>The color drained from Waverly’s face. Nicole couldn’t be hurt, she couldn’t. “What? Was she not okay?”</p>
<p>Julian nodded. “I used everything I had to save her.” </p>
<p>The ancient angel slid the old, rusty ring off his swelled hand and slipped it on her small, dainty finger. The large, masculine ring magically tightened around her small digit. “You will need this more than me, and soon too. Bulshar has brought the fight to us.”</p>
<p>“Shit,” Waverly swore. She galloped down the stairs and snatched her rifle from underneath the kitchen table.</p>
<p>“We packing?” Her sister snuck inside the house, her heart pounding from her chest.</p>
<p>She smiled and charged the gun. “Like a bed wetter for summer camp.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Don’t come near me,” Nicole’s voice was rough and demanding, but Doc did not waiver. “You killed Charlie!”</p>
<p>“I have done much worse,” Doc admitted, taking a long, drawn out puff of his cigarette. “But I will not hurt you.”</p>
<p>A bullet broke through the barn’s wooden walls, causing the dwelling to shutter.</p>
<p>“What the hell is going on out there?” Nicole tried to sit up, but it felt as though a ton of bricks were laying on top of her, pinning her to the ground.</p>
<p>“Bulshar has brought the fight to us,” Doc took another puff of his cigarette as Nicole tried yet again to sit up. “You need to stay down.”</p>
<p>“No, I need to go out there and fight!” Nicole rolled to her side; her heart pounding against her ribcage. “Waverly is out there!”</p>
<p>Doc flicked his cigarette. “Waverly can take care of herself.”</p>
<p>“You know that, and I know that,” She finally shoved herself to the sitting position. “But Waverly doesn’t know that. And Champ-”</p>
<p>“You’re not in the position to be her knight in shining armor.” Doc argued.</p>
<p>“You cannot tell me what I can and cannot do.” She got to her feet as the world spun around her; she felt like a young child riding the teacups, her stomach flying into her throat. Her hand shot to her light head and she closed her eyes. </p>
<p>“Haught, you can barely even stand.”</p>
<p>“And what’s your excuse? You’re immortal and yet you’re still hiding in the barn.”</p>
<p>A bullet cracked the wall and whizzed centimeters from Doc’s hat. “Okay, that’s it. No one messes with my hat.”</p>
<p>He flicked his cigarette onto the barn floor and clutched his shiny silver revolvers. He took one final look through the crack of the door and dove out onto the battlefield, guns blazing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Wynonna! Wynonna!” Waverly screamed. She held her rifle in front of her as she patrolled the house, looking for her sister. </p>
<p>“Wynonna where is she?” She peered out the window, trying to remember when she lost sight of her sister. “The woodpile! Wynonna!”</p>
<p>Waverly froze as she caught sight of BoBo Del Ray creeping behind her newly declared father. She screamed and banged on the window, trying desperately to get his attention, but to no avail. The world slowed as she watched the revenant shoved a large metal sword through his chest. His plain white shirt splattered with blood as he flailed like a fish out of water, before falling to the cold, frozen ground.</p>
<p>Determined to punish BoBo for killing part of their team, Doc shot at him with every step he took. One after another after another bullet rebounded off his metal armor.</p>
<p>“Come on, Doc,” Bobo teased. “You know mortal weapons can’t hurt me.”</p>
<p>“But this can,” Waverly sprinted over to the revenant with power and certainty. She put her hand cold hands on his face, determined. The ring burned through his skin and he felt his insides tightened and explode from within. He took a final gasp and when Waverly finally let go, he fell to the ground. </p>
<p>“Thank you,” He muttered as his eyes closed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Waverly turned as she heard a car door slam shut. Her eyes were glossed over and her brain was foggy, but she could hear Jeremy’s voice screeching through the fog.</p>
<p>“Waverly,” He hailed yet again. “Where is everyone?”</p>
<p>“I think Nicole’s in the barn, and Wynonna and Doc-” </p>
<p>“Wait Doc’s here?” Jeremy asked, both excited and scared of the new villain.</p>
<p>“Where the hell have you been?” Waverly gasped. “I’m sorry I just-”</p>
<p>“No, I know,” Jeremy reached forward, laying his hand on hers. “You’re upset.”</p>
<p>“You can feel it in your powers?”</p>
<p>“No,” He cracked a small smile. “I can see it written on my best friend’s face.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Waverly’s eyes softened as the redhead filled her view. “I thought I lost you.”</p>
<p>“No,” Nicole leaned up against the deck railing. Waverly followed suit, joining her side. “I’m just having some baby carrots.”</p>
<p>“Hey, I’m so sorry about your father, Charlie,” Nicole sighed.  She wrapped her arms against the younger girl, feeling her shudder within her arms. “About Julian, your father.”</p>
<p>“I can’t lose anyone else I love today,” Waverly choked, tears freely falling down her cheeks. The redhead reached over, her gentle fingers wiping away every droplet.</p>
<p>“Well, it’s a good thing you had Champ evacuate along with the rest of the city.” The sheriff sighed. She snatched her hand away from the youngest Earp’s face as if it had been burned. She looked at her feet, desperate not to make eye contact with the beautiful woman. </p>
<p>“What? Oh, Champ, right,” Waverly reached forward, grabbing the other woman’s hand. “Nicole, I-”</p>
<p>“Bring it in team Earp,” Wynonna’s voice echoed across the empty homestead and traveled to the open porch. “Now!”</p>
<p>Nicole tugged her hand away and stood up from the railing. “We better go.”</p>
<p>The redhead took one final look at Waverly before turning and entering the house. She shuffled into the kitchen and sat beside Robin at the small table. The youngest Earp’s eyes flickered around the kitchen as she took in its haphazard state. She walked to the fridge, stole the last untouched bottle of beer, popped open the cap, and took a large swig. She locked eyes with Nicole one last time before sitting beside her, setting the bottle in between them. </p>
<p>“The curse is broken,” Wynonna spoke. “And I’m just the girl with the big ass, ass.”</p>
<p>Nicole looked toward the younger woman, her eyes continuing to ping pong between the beer bottle and the countertop. The redhead grabbed the bottle and held it up to Wynonna, as if making a toast. “Girl, them boots is tight. Top shelf.”</p>
<p>Wynonna leaned toward the cabinet and snatched a set of shot glasses, prefilled to the brim with whiskey. “Bulshar gave me one gift, he showed me what I’m most afraid of.”</p>
<p>“What?” Nicole asked, her fingers flexing against the glass handed to her. She raised the shot glass, transferred all the liquid into her mouth, and then immediately picked up the beer bottle.</p>
<p>The middle Earp answered simply, “Losing you.”</p>
<p>“What?” Jeremy was bewildered. “We are coming with you.”</p>
<p>Robin’s eyes began to blink rapidly and without notice he fell to the ground. “You drugged us.”</p>
<p>Jeremy follows his boyfriend, slinking off his chair and pounding onto the floor.</p>
<p>“That’s not cool Earp.” Nicole tried to keep her eyes open, but the room around her spun faster and faster. Between the loss of blood within her body and the poison within her system, she collided with the floor just like the other house guests.</p>
<p>“Nicole!” Waverly sprang from her seat as Wynonna blasted on her heels, like a rocket ship on its way to another dimension. Waverly peered at the redhead one last time before chasing after her sister.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re still an asshole for drugging them,” Waverly whispered as they approached the serpent like creature.</p>
<p>“Just be happy they are safe.” Wynonna commanded. She raised her voice and faced the monster of a man in front of her. “Yo, Bushwhack!”</p>
<p>“The Earp sisters are here to die together,” The elderly man turned, a sinister smile slithering across his lips. “You bested my bees.”</p>
<p>“I bested your mom.” Wynonna quipped. “We aren’t letting you up those stairs.”</p>
<p>“You’re ridiculous,” He hissed back at the other woman’s immature jokes.</p>
<p>“You’re immortal.” She reminded him as her sister took another step toward the stairs.</p>
<p>“Don’t you get it! You’re not the heir of anything!” He bit back, the grin still not leaving his scaly face. “I really expected more from an angel. </p>
<p>“Yeah?” Waverly retorted, knowing fully well they were about to defeat the elder man. “Then you really won’t expect this.”</p>
<p>Waverly wrapped both of her hands on the sword sticking out of the stairs and squared her hips with the metal object. Easy as one, two, and three, she tugged the sword from the cement, like King Arthur and the sword of Excalibur.</p>
<p>“You idiot,” Bulshar’s laugh was laced with venom. “Only a hero can mame a demon.”</p>
<p>“And only an angel can name one.” Waverly winked; she had outsmarted him. “That’s what my dad taught me right before you killed him.”</p>
<p>She tossed the sword down to her sister. “Wynonna Earp, you are a hero.”</p>
<p>The sword fell into Wynonna’s hands, as if it was made of plastic instead of strong, sturdy metal. Blue flames circled around the blade, giving it power and strength.</p>
<p>“Holy shit balls.” She muttered, the bright blue light reflecting in her pupils.</p>
<p>Wynonna swung her sword left and right, frantic to slice through the slithering villain. She felt the sword slash through his left arm. Her eyes twinkled as blood seeped into his black suit jacket. </p>
<p>Waverly’s eyes widened as her sister received Bulshar’s mean right hook. She took the stairs one by one, anxious help her sister. She could distract him, or she could harm him, she just needed to get down to the ground. As she attempted to make the final step, her figure slammed into and ricochet off an invisible wall. </p>
<p>“The garden will have her!” Bulshar pleaded as the Earp heir tackled him to the ground.</p>
<p>“She is already taken!” Wynonna argued. She shoved the sharp metal through his throat, blood sputtering on her face as he gasped for air. He wrapped his arms tightly around her neck, tugging her on top of him and transferring his venom through an open wound.</p>
<p>“No!” Waverly screamed, her voice echoing off the barrier. She banged wildly on the invisible wall, frantic to break it like she would break a wall of glass.</p>
<p>Her attention dwindled, if only for a second, as a loud ruffling of leaves contrasted against the silence. Her eyes locked on two dirty, black boots as they stilled, as if taking in the scene for themselves. Within seconds, Doc dashed toward the fallen woman and dropped on his knees. He leaned down, affixing his vampire infected mouth against her bloodied neck.</p>
<p>Waverly watched from her position on the bottom stair, a small smile fading her fear induced haze. Feet above her, the gate to the Garden of Eden magically appeared, shining brightly to persuade her to enter. </p>
<p>Doc spit mouthful after mouthful of Wynonna’s blood, laced with poisonous venom. Within seconds, her eyes lit up and she coughed, desperate to absorb good clean oxygen.</p>
<p>“Wynonna!” A strong vine tickled the younger girl’s legs and wrapped around her ankles. She tried to fight the plant, but the weed only grasped on stronger, like devil’s snare in the magical world of Harry Potter. “Wynonna!” </p>
<p>“Don’t you dare give up baby girl!” Wynonna shifted on her elbow, watching as the light started to fade from her sister’s eyes.</p>
<p>“Please don’t leave me alone with that thing.” Waverly cried, afraid to look at anything other than her sister.</p>
<p>“I can’t get up the stairs.” Wynonna pleaded, her voice whimpering with worry.</p>
<p>Feet away, Nicole clutched her abdomen as Julian’s magic faded, no longer holding her wound closed. Waverly’s frightened screams invigorated her, and she filled her lungs with fresh, clean air for strength. She rushed toward the Earp girls, ignoring the pain and the blood dripping down her skin.</p>
<p>“Nicole!” Wynonna bellowed, the redhead filling her line of vision. The redhead didn’t reply or even glance at the eldest Earp, instead, she treaded the crumbling cement stairs, not expelling any excess energy.</p>
<p>“Bring her back!” Wynonna begged Purgatory’s new sheriff. </p>
<p>Nicole looked at the eldest Earp and nodded her head as she stepped through the bright, shimmering gate. Blinding summer sunlight shined into her eyes as she stepped into the humid environment. As her two feet sunk into the nutrient rich soil, she collapsed to the ground, blood puddling all around her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Sweetest Sin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for sticking around and joining me again for my next fic! I hope this one lives up to your expectations!</p>
<p>Now come on, someone needs saving in the garden! (And it gets mighty HAUGHT for only the second chapter)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 2</p>
<p>Pain infiltrated her mind, stabbing through her body and pierced her soul. Her arm found her stinging wound, and she applied a firm pressure and a comforting heat. The sheriff opened her eyes, the rays of the sun burning her corneas. She blinked once, twice, three times as her mind tried to decipher why soft, puffy clouds floated above her instead of the heavy winter blotches that normally hung in Purgatory’s dreary winter sky. Using her palm, she sheltered her wound from the dark dry dirt and rolled onto her side, analyzing her surroundings. Her facial expression relaxed and her beating heart warmed as her eyes danced upon the petite brunette.</p>
<p>“Waves,” She called, her voice raspy. Her dried mouth desperate for refreshing water. “Waves.”</p>
<p>“Nic, you’re awake!” Waverly raced to her friend’s side and stumbled to her trembling knees in sweet solace. She enveloped Nicole in a cloud of warmth, strength, and security, as a collective sigh of relief evaded her own chapped lips as the beating of the redhead’s heart pelted against her own. Nicole shuddered as the strain sent shock waves through her system, but she spurned to cause a stir.  With Waverly Earp at her side, she knew she could overcome any obstacle.</p>
<p>“What happened?” Nicole asked, coughing an airy cough. “Where are we?”</p>
<p>“Welcome to the Garden,” Waverly kissed the older woman’s forehead and rubbed her warm, graceful palms against her arms, but hesitantly let go as her mind comprehended her own actions. Nicole’s head whipped as she took in her surroundings. Sure enough, two empty posts stood at the garden’s entrance for those tasked to protect Eden. Nicole tried to sit as if she could bust through the exit as quick as the garden tugged them through the entrance.</p>
<p>“Be careful,” Waverly commanded. Her hand found Nicole’s lower abdomen as she applied her own pressure to the burning wound, as if she could sense the pain painted across the other woman’s brows.  For a split second, the redhead’s pain vanished from the forefront of her mind as a familiar stem of fiery heat of burned within her lower body. “Your laceration broke open, I’m assuming when you were trying to get to Wynonna and I.”</p>
<p>“Charlie’s magic just didn’t hold after his death. I am so sorry, Waverly,” The redhead broke in despair. “It’s my fault Julian died, and it was for nothing!”</p>
<p>She tucked the stray strands of red angel hair behind Nicole’s ear. “No, it wasn’t. You’re still here, and I don’t know what I would have done without you.”</p>
<p>“But still-”</p>
<p>“I should blame myself,” Waverly said. “I knew Wynonna was drugging you, but I didn’t tell you. Instead, you were forced to play charades like your life was a game. Do you remember that?”</p>
<p>Nicole squeezed her tear ducts as she tried to remember that night. “Yes.”</p>
<p>“I knew come hell or high water, you would find us once you woke. So it’s my fault that your wound reopened, because it wouldn’t have if you just stayed at the homestead.”</p>
<p>“So the alternate would have been what? You trapped here with Doc, or worse, alone! I’d rather be bleeding out.”</p>
<p>“Can I look at it?” Waverly asked permission, though her fingers tingled with the thought of her own digits grazing against the redhead’s warm, naked skin. Nicole nodded her acceptance and within less than a full second, the younger woman slid her delicate fingertips under the other woman’s bloody uniform, her pupils glazing with arousal as she took in the few inches of the redhead’s exposed strong yet soft stomach. “I used the first aid kit in your backpack. Thank god you keep everything under the sun in there.”</p>
<p>“More like thank god we live in Purgatory,” Nicole chuckled. She felt Waverly’s eyes on her exposed stomach, and she fought against her prickling fingers as they chanted for her to hide her naked skin. </p>
<p>“Looks better,” Waverly said. “Not great, but better than it had.”</p>
<p>“How long have I been out?”</p>
<p>Waverly peered at the sky as she analyzed the sun's placement. “Two to three days. Maybe a week?”</p>
<p>“A week!” Nicole gasped through clenched teeth. “Did you eat? Drink?”</p>
<p>“I ate one of the granola bars in your bag. I saved the other one for you.”</p>
<p>“Waverly, you need to take care of yourself.”</p>
<p>“You worried me.” She admitted, biting her lower lip in uneasiness. “I didn’t want to leave your side.”</p>
<p>“I’m so sorry I left you alone, Waves.” Nicole bemoaned.</p>
<p>“I’m just happy you are alive.”</p>
<p> “Have you tried to open the door?”</p>
<p>“There is no door,” Waverly nodded toward the posts. “It disappeared as soon as our feet hit the ground.”</p>
<p>“Shit, okay,” Nicole assessed their plight. She her callused palms against the grassy ground, but her numb arms weren’t strong enough to help her stand. It felt as if someone stabbed her with a poisonous knife, and it still protruded from her abdomen. With the smallest bit of movement, the pain struck her entire body and shattered her brain. She couldn’t do this herself. As much as didn’t want to, she needed to lean on someone else. She needed Waverly.<br/>
“Let me help you, Nicole,” Waverly commanded. She reached toward the redhead, helping her stand on her legs. The muscles of her lower limbs trembled under the unfamiliar weight of her own form.<br/>
“Okay,” Nicole’s two feet wavered and her body swayed. Her legs trembled on the unbalanced fertile ground. The youngest Earp slid her muscular arm around the redhead’s waist, holding her tight before she could nosedive into the dirt.</p>
<p>“We should stay here, Nic,” Waverly surmised as the warmth of the older woman pulsated through her veins. “You lost so much blood.” </p>
<p>“I am more than okay, Waves,” Nicole spread her legs farther apart as her stance strengthened and her frozen muscles thawed. Her hand ghosted against her butterfly stitched abdomen, the pads of her digits brushing against Waverly’s hand. She pushed the pain to the back of her mind. She needed to focus on their survival.  “So, what’s going through that magnificent brain of yours, Waves? Do you have a plan?”</p>
<p>“Well, I wasn’t much of a girl scout, but I got to think while you were…” Waverly sighed as worry flooded her features.  “We need water. We should look for some this morning, and then we can return toward the entrance before nightfall. That way if Wynonna breaks into the garden, we will be waiting.”</p>
<p>Nicole nodded as her eyes glanced at the puffy white clouds floating in the sky. “How has the weather been?” </p>
<p>“Like paradise. No rain, no snow, just plenty of sun.”</p>
<p>“Good! I could use the vitamin D. And the warmth will help me defrost from that crazy Purgatory winter.” Nicole agreed. “At least with this warmth, we shouldn’t have to worry about snow.”</p>
<p>“Surly snow isn’t in paradise, right?” Waverly’s hand slipped from Nicole’s waste, and the redhead missed the warmth at once. She snatched several jagged sedimentary rocks and stacked them like a child playing with building blocks. “I’ve heard hikers do this when they want to remember which way they came.”</p>
<p>“You got that right.” Nicole bent forward, fighting through the piercing pain. Her hands snaking around the shoulder straps of her backpack, but before she could fling the bag onto her back, Waverly smacked her hand and snatched the backpack from right between Nicole’s fingertips. </p>
<p>“Let me carry that,” The youngest Earp bossed. “I need you to focus on staying upright.”</p>
<p>Nicole groaned through gritted teeth. She hated the feeling dependent. An inner turmoil raged within her mind, because it was Waverly. Surly she could depend on the woman who owned her heart, right? Even if she didn’t know it. “Fine. Let’s go.” </p>
<p>“I remember little from the bible,” Nicole sheepishly admitted as they stepped through the dense, darkened forest. The soles of her shoes sank into the dark, damp ground, wet as if by magic. “I remember a tree of life, and Eve convincing Adam to eat an apple.”</p>
<p>“Because of all those cigarettes you smoked behind the church?” Waverly nudged her. Her optics scanned the forest canopy, noting the dark green and light-yellow leaves hanging high in the sky. The smell of pine tickled her senses.</p>
<p>“And all those girls I was flirting with,” Nicole winked as an unconscious flash of hurt struck Waverly. The redhead tracked a small path of animal footprints leading to a thick, dark brown sycamore tree as jealously bubbled within the younger Earp. </p>
<p>Taking a deep breath, Waverly tried to dispose of the dangerous vibes shocking her nervous system. Thinking about Nicole with another woman haunted her every dream. Jealousy, she knew what it was. Why couldn’t she just admit it to herself? “So confident in yourself, huh, Haught?”</p>
<p>“Confidence is a stain you can’t wipe off,” The redhead smirked. The dimples in her cheeks popped and stabbing the other brunette, as if they were a dagger crushing through Waverly’s heart. The sheriff cuffed the sleeves of her uniform as droplets of perspiration trickled across forehead. The brunette’s mouth went dry as her pupils followed the tantalizing bead as it trailed down Nicole’s nose, then skimmed the top of her lip before falling to the ground.<br/>
“Waves?” Nicole called, sensing the younger woman drifting to another place and time. “Are you okay?”<br/>
“Yeah, sorry,” Waverly shook the arousal from her mind. “I just spaced out. What were we talking about again?”<br/>
“The Garden,” Nicole smirked. “You know, our current location.”<br/>
“Sorry, yes. Unfortunately, I know little more than that,” Waverly admitted. “I remember four rivers branch out from within the Garden of Eden.”</p>
<p>Nicole used her sweaty palm to fan her scorching body as the sun beat on her neck. “Do you think we will find water?”<br/>
“I mean one would think,” Waverly agreed. She teased a loose string from the bottom of her tank top as she focused on anything other than the sweaty other woman. Instead, she focused on the bible, the least unsexy thing she could think of. “God told Adam and Eve they could eat fruit from any of the trees in the garden except from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. A serpent told Eve that God was lying and convinced her she could eat the fruit.”</p>
<p>“Could this serpent have been Bulshar?” She questioned. “Or a demon taking his shape?”</p>
<p>“I’m not sure,” She admitted. “Eve gave in to gluttony and ate the fruit. When she incurred no punishment, she convinced Adam the fruit was safe to eat. God found the siblings and cursed them to death.”</p>
<p>Nicole stroked her red arm across her forehead, wiping sweat on her arm but leaving dirt in its wake. “Can we stop for a minute?”</p>
<p>“Sure,” Waverly’s paused. Her head looked tilted left and right as she devoured their location. “Are you feeling okay?”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Nicole wiggled behind the other woman, clutching the zipper of her own backpack. “So, I’m assuming eating the fruit was a sin, and that’s why God cursed them?”</p>
<p>“According to the bible, yes,” Waverly stood still as the redhead shuffled deeper into the bag. Snatching her knife, she slipped it into her pocket. “Are you sure you are okay?”</p>
<p>“Just hot.” Nicole stepped out from behind Waverly, her fingertips teasing the buttons on her uniformed shirt with certainty.</p>
<p>“Yeah you are,” The words slipped from her lips and her cheeks flushed from embarrassment. She leaned against the strong, sturdy weeping willow tree, shadows of leaves dancing across her face and shielding her reddened facade. </p>
<p>“What?” The redhead’s ears seared bright crimson. Waverly’s cheeks flushed as Nicole’s uniformed shirt feathered across her creamy white skin. Goosebumps nuzzled Nicole’s skin as the air grazed her sweaty figure. The shirt slipped from her wet digits and pooled at her feet. </p>
<p>“Haught, like you’re last name?” Waverly replied, her throat dry and raspy. She was thirsty for water, right? Just water. “Are you sure you are okay?”</p>
<p>“Must be the heat, I can’t keep up with your jokes.” Without warning, she stabbed the knife through the material of her pants, desperate to rid herself from the warm cotton. </p>
<p>Waverly shoved herself from the ground and surrounded the redhead, desperate to yank the knife from the trembling hand. “Let me take care of that.”</p>
<p>“No, I got it.” The sheriff continued at her task, slashing through the material as the sound of ripping fabric penetrating her ear drums. </p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly lay her hand on top of Nicole’s as anxiety rushed through her nerves. The redhead stopped her chore, her eyes locking onto blown pupils. “Please.”</p>
<p>The redhead opened her mouth to argue, but she dove into the pools of Waverly’s hazel eyes. She nestled the handle of the knife into Waverly’s uncertain hands, their fingertips brushing in the transfer. Nicole inhaled a coarse breath; he could not reject Waverly. Why wasn’t she stronger? Instead of punishment for her lack of resolve,  Waverly’s hands grazed her upper legs; her body alight with fire from every slow, torturous movement. Or was this punishment itself? Nicole bit her lip, stifling a moan as the youngest Earp’s fingertips teased her pale thighs. Nicole’s tongue swept across her dry lips as Waverly tore through the final bit of material on one leg.</p>
<p>“How’s that? Short enough?” Waverly asked. She tried to read the dusty, dark pupils of Nicole’s eyes, but to no avail. A mischievous fuse caught a-flame within the youngest Earp. With hesitancy and uncertainty, but an unfound confidence, Waverly kneaded the smooth, sweaty skin of Nicole’s upper thigh, relishing in the feel of her body underneath her own fingertips. A smirk trickled across her face as an involuntary moan escaped the redhead's dry mouth. As Nicole’s eyes tensed shut and rolled to the back of her head, Waverly decided it was best to end her torture.  A sigh slipped from the redhead from the loss of contact as Waverly moved to the opposite leg.<br/>
In what felt like several torturous hours, Nicole felt the breeze blow against both of her ghost white legs. Her body temperature dropped in an instant.</p>
<p>“You want me to do you?” Nicole’s ears burned as red as her hair as she chided her own word choice. “I mean, do you want me to cut your jeans?”</p>
<p>Waverly’s gentle hand stroked the redhead’s sweaty back. “I know what you meant. I’m okay for now. You know me, I’m always cold. This weather feels perfect.”</p>
<p>“Hot enough for a tank top though,” Nicole grinned and waggled her eyebrows at Waverly’s lack of sleeves. Before the cat could catch her tongue. “How long have we been walking?”</p>
<p>Waverly peered into the sky as she analyzed the sun’s position in the bright blue daytime sky. “An hour, maybe a few? I don’t know.” </p>
<p> “I think I see a clearing up ahead.” Nicole pointed through the thicket to the spot where the tree’s canopy split and rays of sunshine cast green-gold luminescence over the once soaked ground. </p>
<p>“You think there might be water?”</p>
<p>“I sure hope so,” Nicole smacked her arm, killing a blood thirsty mosquito on her sweaty shoulder. “I’m thirsty and you must be too.”</p>
<p>“We should wash your wound too,” Waverly reminded. “We don’t need it to get infected.”</p>
<p>“Yes dear,” The redhead pinched her eyelids shut as the sounds of the forest flooded her ear drums. “You hear that? I think I hear water!”</p>
<p>Though Waverly wanted to run to the clearing, she stayed in pace with her best friend. She could almost feel the water in her mouth, rehydrating her body and her veins. Gnarled tree roots dipped into the nutrient rich soil and stretched toward the clearing.</p>
<p>“I can’t wait to take a nice sip of water.” The redhead imagined with her mouth as dry as a desert on a sweltering summer day.</p>
<p>“I can’t wait to take a dive,” Waverly said as a glint of the swiftly flowing river captured her attention. The sun’s burning rays reflected off the water, brightening the world around them. </p>
<p>Nicole’s breath caught in the back of her throat as her eyes lay upon the shorter woman, in harmony with the river as her backdrop. “Wow.”</p>
<p>“We must boil the water before we drink it.” She abandoned the bag onto the fertile soil and knelt, running her dirty fingers through the fresh running water. “Hope you know how to make a fire, cowboy.”</p>
<p>“Nope,” Nicole replied with a smirk as her heavy boots sunk into the slimy mud. </p>
<p>“You’ve never made a fire?”</p>
<p>“No, we don't need to boil the water.” The redhead replied with a smug grin. Without another word, she rummaged through the contents of her backpack.</p>
<p>“Yeah, we do. There’s a bunch of bacteria and-”</p>
<p>Nicole found the bright blue pipe like object and handed it over to Waverly. “This straw gets rid of 99% of bacteria in any fresh water. I bought it when I used to rock climb. It works remarkably. I haven’t been sick once.”</p>
<p>“I have never been so happy you packed a straw! You are a lifesaver!” She grabbed the object from her hand and held it on top of the water. She sucked into the fat straw, wading directly in the river, her body cooling from the refreshing fresh water.</p>
<p>“Nicole?” Waverly passed the plastic straw to the parched woman. “Will we ever get home?”</p>
<p>“I don’t know, Waves, I really don’t.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Please leave a kudo or comment below and let me know what you think! Find me on Twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Slug's Coming out of its Shell</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>*creeps in hoping no one notices I am a day late*</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 3</p><p>“I’ve been thinking,” Waverly started. The two lay on the patchy alfalfa pasture, watching wisps of white marshmallows float above their heads. Every so often, Nicole pointed at an animal like cloud; her imagination reminded Waverly of a child’s. Nicole did this to keep the youngest Earp from panicking, not that it was working in the slightest.</p><p>“That’s never good,” Nicole shifted to her side with a smirk, a clump of dirt and dried grass digging into her side. Propping herself on her elbow, she gave the brunette her close attention. </p><p>“Julian and Juan Carlo guarded the garden, right?”</p><p>“You got it,” She grinned as the well-greased gears rotated faster in Waverly’s mind. Her intelligence was one of the many things she loved about her. Liked, liked about her.  </p><p>“And when Juan Carlo left, Julian protected the garden alone for decades.”</p><p>“I’m following you so far.”</p><p>“So, what if,” Waverly glanced at Nicole’s face for a split second before her gaze darted back to the glowing sky. “I take my father’s place.”</p><p>“No,” Nicole scrambled to her feet as pain from her abdomen sliced through her. She tore passed the youngest Earp. not allowing her a chance to argue. </p><p>The brunette chased after Nicole, her short legs working double time to reach the redhead’s eyes. “Nicole, listen.”</p><p>“No,” The older woman paused at the river’s edge. She seized a thin stone and skipped it across the fresh water. Water splashed into the air as the rock jetted against the water before sinking to the murky bottom. “I will not let you condemn yourself to the knight’s watch.”</p><p>“It’s in my blood. I would follow in my father’s footsteps.”</p><p>“Would he want that for you?” The redhead spat. “To spend centuries trapped here.”</p><p>“Look, Nicole, if I guard the garden, the gate should open,” Waverly squatted, sinking her hand into the wet, black dirt and sifting it through her fingertips. </p><p>“I’m not leaving here without you.” </p><p>“Nicole!”</p><p>“Call me selfish,” Nicole commanded, but her cracking voice betrayed her genuine emotions. “Think about your sister, Waves. What would she do without you? And Champ would be in bar fights daily! Now that only happens once a week!”</p><p>“But you would be safe.”</p><p>“But I don’t want to be in the Ghost River Triangle without you.” The redhead held out her calloused hand. “Come on, we need to return before the sun sets. Who knows, maybe Wynonna is waiting for us.”</p><p>“Can you imagine her right now?” Waverly snickered.</p><p>“She’s threatened Nedley half a dozen times!”</p><p>“And Doc?” </p><p>“Slept with him twice.” The taller woman smirked. “She won’t admit it though.”</p><p>Waverly paused, turning toward the other woman with a look of pain in her eyes. “Nicole?”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“We need to get out of here.”</p><p> </p><p>“Where the hell is she, Nedley?” Wynonna slammed her fist on the desk,  rattling the few remaining personal items scattered upon it. </p><p>“I don’t know, Wynonna.” He replied, calm and collective as ever.</p><p>“You’ve lived here for centuries, old man!” She went to pound her fist on the fallen picture frame, but the old Sheriff snatched it away from her reach. “You’re telling me you don’t know how to open the Garden of Eden?”</p><p>“Wynonna, I’m not lying,” He scooted closer to the polished oak desk, ushering the other woman to sit. “You aren’t the only one who lost something, Wynonna. I lost my best deputy just days before she would take my position at the station. She’s like a daughter to me.”</p><p>“You lost something?” Wynonna banged her fist on the desk, causing his trinkets to rattle. “I lost my daughter to this curse. I lost Doc to a fucking vampire. I lost Dolls to Bulshar’s lackey. I am not losing my sister too.”</p><p>“No one has forgotten your sacrifice, Wynonna,” He reminded. “I’ll do whatever I can to help you. But pestering me about the garden will not help. Have you retraced their last steps?”</p><p>“I’m not stupid!” Wynonna spit. “I couldn’t even find the stairs!”</p><p>Randy rose from his chair and yanked a chipped coffee mug from one of his shelves. Returning to his desk, he snatched an enormous bottle of single malt top-shelf Scotch whiskey. He opened the cap and poured a healthy dose into the mug and handed it to the Earp.</p><p>“Have you enlisted the boys to help?” He filled his own mug with a double shot.</p><p>“Oh, you mean potato wonder and Lucado’s lackey?” Wynonna downed the burning liquor in one go. “They are upstairs trying to figure out how to get inside the garden.”</p><p>“Like I said, Wynonna, I will help,” Nedley raised his cup. “I will have my officers on high alert for anything supernatural.”</p><p>“You mean your other one officer?” Wynonna chuckled as she hopped from her seat. “Thanks Sheriff. I might take you up on that.”</p><p> </p><p>The sun sunk in the sky, like a diver jumping into the ocean for buried treasure. The moonlight danced across the trees' dense leafy canopy, poking through the cracks between the trees. Dried, dead leaves crackled underneath their feet as they shuffled along the last leg of their journey.</p><p>“Has it been warm at night?” Nicole swatted a thirsty mosquito from her face.</p><p>“Warm,” Waverly described, but the goosebumps lining her arms told a different story. “But tonight it is chilly.”</p><p>“Just our luck,” Nicole snickered. Off in the distance she could see the shadow of the short rock tower they built hours before, though those hours felt like days. Her eyes drooped and her movements slowed. “I might have a surprise for you in the backpack.”</p><p>“Oh god, what else do you have in here?” Waverly asked. She took the backpack straps off her arms and flipped it, so the bag lay against her chest. Like a kid at Christmas, she unzipped the large pocket in haste and dipped her hands inside. Reaching under the first aid kit, her fingertips caressed soft cotton material. “You brought my hoodie! Do you always carry this with you?”</p><p>“Yes,” Disguised by the darkened night, Nicole’s cheeks blushed a bright tinge of red. “I want to take care of you. And you get cold all the time.”</p><p>“It doesn’t happen that much!” Waverly gasped in fake offense. She dropped the backpack to the ground, knocking over their rock formation. “Okay, yeah it does.”</p><p>“Welcome home.” Nicole plopped onto the dewy ground as the brunette stretched the hoodie over her shoulders. The redhead smiled,  “You finally learned how to put a shirt correctly!”</p><p>The younger girl swatted at her, but a sweet smile flickered across her face. “I need to replace your bandage.”</p><p>“Is that an excuse to get my shirt off?” Nicole huffed. “I guess it’s only fair.” </p><p>“Well, maybe if you didn’t get hurt so often!”</p><p>“Oh yeah, I just sitting here screaming for the demented creatures of Purgatory to come find me!”</p><p>“Maybe?” The smirk didn’t leave her face as she popped open the first aid kit and grabbed two new butterfly stitches and a large bandage. “Get over here.”</p><p>“Bossy, I like it,” The redhead winked. She scooted across the ground until she was beside the other woman. She lay back against the dirt, giving Waverly full access to her wound.</p><p>“Are you always so cocky, Haught?” Waverly asked. Her fingers danced across the hem of Nicole’s tank top until they pirouetted against her soft skin. If she didn’t know any better, she would think Waverly was teasing her.</p><p>“Nope,” Her voice squeaked. As Waverly opened the bandage, images of her and Champ floated through Nicole’s mind.  What was she doing? Waverly loved Champ, not her. She would want that man child with her in the garden, wouldn’t she? The redhead propped herself up, snatching the materials from the other woman. “I can take care of it.”</p><p>“Nicole, stop,” Waverly wrapped her soft fingertips against her beating wrist. “Please let me help.”</p><p>“Why don’t you go help Champ?” Nicole shouted. “I’ve got this myself.”</p><p>Nicole ripped the plastic off the bandage and leaned forward, attempting to open the bandage and tried to position it on her stomach. </p><p>“Nicole,” Waverly tried again, her voice softer and caring. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“Nothing,” She replied curtly. Crumpling her uniformed shirt, she thrust it under her head as if it was a makeshift pillow. “Goodnight, Waverly.”</p><p>Both women lay awake for hours, their eyes locked on the stars swimming in the distance. Nicole forced her eyelids open, waiting hours upon hours until Waverly’s breath evened out.  Once she heard gentle snores continue, she drifted off into dreamland.</p><p> </p><p>Waverly woke up minutes before the sun peeked into the sky, feeling as though she slept for days on end. Sweet chickadees sang, ushering in another day. A satisfied smirk played across her lips as she found an emergency blanket laying on top of her. Warmth flooded her as she imagined the other woman covering her in the middle of the night. A soft, content sigh escaped her mouth as she rolled to her side and felt Nicole beside her. Her dry, strawberry tongue lolled from her mouth and dried drool snaked down her cheek; Waverly thought she couldn’t look more stunning. She debated their distance; would Nicole wake if she tucked the lock of fiery red hair behind her ear? </p><p>As the world spun violently around her, the youngest Earp clenched her eyes shut. After taking several deep breaths, she cracked them open, but a sudden wave of nausea crashed through her stomach. She hid her hazel pupils yet again, but the sickening feeling did not subside; instead, she felt bile within her throat. She leapt to her feet and emptied the entire contents of her stomach on the trunk of an innocent pine tree.</p><p>“Waves, are you okay?” Nicole shouted as the youngest Earp fell to her knees. She watched as the tough bark of the tree scratched at Waverly’s clammy palms. </p><p>“I think so,” Waverly yelled, startled when the redhead lay a warm hand on her shoulder.</p><p>“Are you sure?”</p><p>“Yeah, I feel better now,” She agreed as she wiped her mouth with a fallen green leaf. “Better out than in.”</p><p>“Let’s go get that granola bar in your stomach,” The redhead commanded. “You must be hungry.”</p><p>“Nicole,” Waverly whined as the redhead held out her hand to help her to her unsteady feet. Nicole’s arm slid around her waist to support her swaying form. </p><p>“Well, look who it is! Waverly Earp, the mortal champion,” The elder man spoke as he tugged on the bill of his baseball cap. </p><p>“No,” Waverly shook her head and looked passed the scraggly old man in front of her. “You’re dead.”</p><p>“Ah, but you are on my turf now,” The older man adjusted his hat, protecting his eyes from the blaring morning sun.</p><p>“So, are we dead too?” Nicole asked. She stepped in front of the shorter woman, using her tall figure to shelter her from harm. </p><p>“No,” He chuckled, as though it was as obvious as the color of his skin. “Waverly is here to take her place, right Ms. Earp?”</p><p>“Ah...” Waverly stuttered.</p><p>“No, she’s not.” Nicole argued. She took another step back, her figure brushing against Waverly’s. “I won’t let her.”  </p><p>“Ah, Sheriff Haught,” He nodded his head, his smile not flickering from his facade. “I know you get what you want in Purgatory, but you are in my land. This is fate.”</p><p>“Says the guy who gotten eaten by a widow trying to protect his own seal.” She snickered in reply. “Was that fate too?”</p><p>“Nicole,” Waverly’s stern voice filtered into her ear as she urged the redhead to stand down. </p><p>“Do you think Julian would want his daughter to spend eternity protecting the garden or would he want her live in Purgatory with the ones she loves? She has a family and a boyfriend back home. She should not be trapped here!”</p><p>“Sheriff-”</p><p>“What if I take her place?” </p><p>“Nicole, no,” Waverly tugged the redhead’s arm.</p><p>“You are a mere mortal,”  Juan Carlo scratched his 5 o’clock shadow. “That would need council approval.”</p><p>“No, Nicole.” Waverly argued and turned to her elder. “Don’t listen to her. This is my duty, not hers.”</p><p>“One of you must stay, Ms. Earp.” He reminded the duo. “I will discuss the possibility of Ms. Haught taking the post with the counsel and report back. And Ms. Earp,” He looked from Waverly to the redhead. “I think it’s time you to be honest with yourself for you and the ones you love.”</p><p>“No, stop,” She called one last time as he vanished like the ghost he was.  Pleading, she begged, “Nicole, you can’t.”</p><p>“I can’t? But you can?” The redhead snatched a tiny pebble from the forest floor.</p><p>“That is correct.” She trotted over to Nicole, desperate to get her attention. “This is my burden to bear, not yours.”</p><p>“Why? Because you’re an Earp?” She rose to her feet and chucked the rock as hard as possible into the forest’s canopy. Leaves rustled and branches cracked before gravity thrust the pebble to the ground and paradise returned to its silence. </p><p>“Yes,” She answered.</p><p>“That’s not the answer for everything!” Nicole argued. “Look, your life is perfect at home. You and Champ have been dating for a decade. He has to propose soon, right? And before you know it, you will start a family-”</p><p>“Nicole,” she tried again, but the redhead had none of it. </p><p>“You’re working for Black Badge and doing what you love. Not to mention you have a wonderful family, Waves. You have your sister, and Alice, and Doc.”</p><p>“And I have you,” Waverly interrupted. She reached to grab Nicole’s hand, but she jerked it away. </p><p>“Look, maybe I’m destined for more. Maybe it’s fate that we got trapped in the Garden.” Nicole sighed, frustration. “You don’t understand.”</p><p>“I don’t understand?” Waverly repeated to Nicole’s fleeting form. Anger simmered inside the sheriff, and Waverly hadn’t a clue how to stop the lid from popping off the pot. “Nicole!”</p><p>She debated following Nicole; every bone in her body commanded her to follow, but she knew Nicole needed space. In the forest's silence, her own jagged breath echoed against the wood. Using a scaly trunk as a brace, she slid to the gritty ground. She rested her head against the dark, patchy bark as the tree's roots wrapping around her as if to protect her. Within seconds, her breathing slowed, her eyelids fluttered, and a soft snore escaped.</p><p> </p><p>“Waverly, please!” The scratchy sound woke the snoozing woman from her fitful sleep. She blinked as her brain racing to figure her location. How long had she been asleep? Hours? Days?</p><p>“Nicole?” Waverly’s throaty voice echoed. When Nicole’s sneakers came into focus, she leaped to the struggling girl’s side. One of the woman’s palms lay against a tree opposite with pain etched onto her face. “Nicole, what is it?”</p><p>“I’m bleeding again,” Nicole flipped to her right side, as blood snaked her arm and seeped through her white tank top. </p><p>“What happened?” She squealed. Before she could make it to the other woman’s side, she fell to the ground like a ton of bricks flung from the Eiffel Tower. “Nicole!”</p><p>“Waves,” She spoke, her eyes trembled. Waverly sunk to her knees and applied pressure to Nicole’s bloody laceration with her own dirt dusted hands.</p><p>“Nic, what do I need to do?”</p><p>“I know,” Waverly’s head snapped to the left like a dried tree branch in the blustering wind. The dead voice rung in her head like nails scratching a chalkboard. She clenched her eyes shut; the five-foot-tall widow dressed in Beth Gardener’s skin would disappear when she reopened her pupils, right? Wrong.</p><p>“You’re dead,” The brunette tripped as she tried to get to her feet and stand toe to toe with the other woman. “Wynonna killed you.”</p><p>“And we killed Juan Carlo, yet you have seen him, too.” She smirked. She leaned against the ash tree trunk inches away from the hurting woman, a sinister grin locking onto her face. Nicole gasped in pain and within an instant, Waverly fell to her side.</p><p>“I’m right here, Nicole,” Waverly stretched her hand forward and tucked the sweaty hair from her delicate, yet pallid face.  </p><p>“She’s dying,” Beth squatted beside the youngest Earp, her smile widening with every one of the redhead’s gasping breaths. “I can fix that. I can save her.”</p><p>“Bull shit,” She blasted  toward the first aid kit, a time bomb ticking in her head.</p><p>“Time is of the essence,” Beth replied, not removing her eyes from Nicole’s almost lifeless body.</p><p>Waverly settled back on the ground and popped open the bottle of whiskey. She poured a generous measure on the pus- and blood-filled cut. “Wynonna would kill me for this.”</p><p>“This will not help, you know,” Beth tormented her. “I bet if she dies, you will regret never telling her, huh Waves?”</p><p>In frustration, Waverly chucked the whiskey cap into the wooded forest. The rough material sliced through the tree’s rough bark before bouncing to the ground.  </p><p>“What do you expect me to do, Beth?” Tears welling in her eyes. “I can’t lose her.”</p><p>“I can save her.” Beth recalled. Déjà vu struck Waverly as goosebumps lined her arms. </p><p>Waverly’s fingers intertwined with the redhead’s hands as her pulse diminished with each passing second. “What do I have to do?”</p><p>“Oh, that’s simple,” The shorter woman’s voice boiled with evil poison. “Open the gate. Let us out.”</p><p>“Open the gate?” Waverly huffed. “If I knew how I would have done it all ready!”</p><p>“You’re a smart girl, Wave,” Beth leaned forward and wiped sweaty, red hair away from Nicole’s eyes.</p><p>“Don’t touch her!” She bellowed.</p><p>“Waves,” Nicole gasped. She stirred and attempted to sit. “Waverly please! It burns!”</p><p>She her eyes locked with the poisonous browned eyes, ready to make a deal with the devil. “I’ll do it.”</p><p>“Waverly!” A powerful yet familiar voice called, forcing the brunette’s neck to snap towards the sound. </p><p>“Nicole?” The world spun around her and her head felt like a ton of bricks. Her heartbeat doubled as she dropped the hand she held. How were there two Nicole’s?</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Please leave me a comment or kudo below!</p><p>And of course, come bother me on twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Whisper Sloth in Curls of Smoke</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Back on time this week! and look its before midnight!!</p>
<p>Thanks for reading and leaving comments/kudos.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 4</p>
<p>“What?” Waverly stood as her legs quaked. “I’m confused.” </p>
<p>“So aren’t I,” Nicole tiptoed over to the minor group, her pupils burning in disarray.</p>
<p>“Waverly, that woman is just a hallucination.” Beth bellowed. “The garden is playing tricks on you.”</p>
<p>“I…” Waverly peered from redhead to redhead. </p>
<p>“Waverly, it’s me.” The standing redhead pleaded for the other woman to look at her.</p>
<p>“Waverly, she’s dying!” Beth cried, readjusting the brunette’s focus. “You need her. What would you do without her?”</p>
<p>The healthy Nicole snatched Waverly’s hand and encircled it with her warm fingers. She lay the brunette’s frigid hand against her erratic heartbeat. “I’m right here. I’m okay.”</p>
<p>“No, she’s not!” Beth spoke, her bacteria infested breath tickling the youngest Earp’s cheek. “She’s dying!” </p>
<p>“I don’t know who the hell that is, but that’s not me.” Nicole replied, Waverly’s fingertips still set upon her chest. “Waverly feel the beat of my heart; it’s beating for you. You know me more than anyone else. This is me. I am real. That think is not.”</p>
<p>“She will die, Waverly, and it will be your fault!”</p>
<p>“Shut up!” Waverly screamed. She grasped Nicole’s hand from her chest and dropped it to the ground. She mazed through the throng toward the dying body.</p>
<p>One last time, she glanced at the redhead before her, knowing she was making the right decision. She pummeled her foot into the wound of the dying woman lying on the ground, watching as she sputtered and cried in agony.  Within seconds, the redhead’s body decayed into the ground, leaving behind the smell of burning flesh in her wake. Beside her, Widow Beth evaporated into thin air, like a raindrop in the blistering desert.</p>
<p>“Holy” Waverly started.</p>
<p>“Shit,” Nicole finished. She snaked her pale arm toward the left side of her abdomen, massaging her now burning wound. “Remind me never to piss you off. Sheesh.”</p>
<p>“What the hell was that?” The youngest Earp asked.</p>
<p>“No clue, but the demon’s cut was on the wrong side. Damn.”</p>
<p>“Oh gosh,” Waverly palmed her forehead. “I didn’t even notice. How was I that oblivious!”</p>
<p>“Hey,” Nicole lay her calloused hand on the brunette’s warm but trembling shoulder. “It’s okay. I only noticed it because I can still feel it.”</p>
<p>“You were mad at me!” Waverly bellowed. “You were so mad you wouldn’t even communicate with me, and now you are being nice!”</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Nicole gestured to the ground, urging her sit. “You are more important to me than a stupid quarrel. Friends fight, and our argument spat will not change how I feel about you. How much I care about you.”</p>
<p>“Are you sure?” Waverly settled in the dirt beside the redhead, folding her legs underneath her body as if she was guarding herself. </p>
<p>Nicole wiped the stray tear as it escaping the brunette’s tear ducts. “I’m not going anywhere, Waves. Even if we fight, I will be beside you, always. Okay?”</p>
<p>“I guess,” She took a deep breath as Nicole’s words coursed through her veins. </p>
<p>“And,” Nicole intertwined her warm fingers with Waverly’s delicate ones. “Stop trying to be so brave around me, okay? I want you to be yourself. Be you. I love you for you, Waves.”</p>
<p>The brunette set her heavy, pounding head on the redhead’s strong shoulders. She listened to the sound of the other woman’s heartbeat, blood rushing through her veins and air expelling from her nose. Physical and mental exhaustion trounced her ability to stay awake, and she drifted to sleep in Nicole’s arms. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Anything yet?” With a brown paper bag at her side, Wynonna strolled through the door of the once Black Badge owned office. The room was littered with piles of trash; obviously its inhabitants hadn’t left in days. She dumped the bag on the table in the middle of the desk. </p>
<p>“Not much,” Jeremy spun in his desk chair, locking eyes with the heartbroken Earp. </p>
<p>“What do we already know?” Wynonna split the bag with a loud rip. The aroma of piping hot Chinese food burned through the room. </p>
<p>“Well, we know that Juan Carlo and Julian protected the garden of Eden. Juan Carlo left the garden and tasked Wyatt as the mortal champion.”</p>
<p>“Which he did such a glorious job.” Wynonna sniped.</p>
<p>Robin continued, “Constance created the three seals to keep Bulshar dormant. Tasked with protecting a seal, Juan Carlo stayed in the Ghost River Triangle to make sure they kept the seals intact.”</p>
<p>Wynonna removed the containers from the bag one by one. “Someone else who did an amazing job. And Julian left, why? To save my mother from my dad’s abuse? God, our lives are such a tragedy.”</p>
<p>“That’s our best guess.” The Black Badge chemist agreed. “How’s Doc?”</p>
<p>“Let me help you with that,” Robin sped over to Wynonna, helping unpack the bag. </p>
<p>Wynonna took a swig of day-old beer from the table, the remnants trailed her chin and dribbled onto the table. “Better, now that he’s not having angel blood cravings. But he’s going through major withdrawal for any human or animal blood. I don’t think it’s safe for him to be around any rushing veins soon.”</p>
<p>“Well, my arm thanks you.” Robin smirked.</p>
<p>“I thought a cute little squirrel bit you!” Wynonna huffed, harassing her sister’s old classmate.</p>
<p>“I mean, that story was less creepy.” He folded up the bag and slipped the paper into the blue recycling bin. “So, I was thinking about Alice.”</p>
<p>Behind Wynonna, Jeremy gestured at his boyfriend to stop the verbal diarrhea from falling from his mouth.<br/>
“What about her?”</p>
<p>“Well,” Jeremy slid into the seat as heat radiated from Robin’s eyes. “Since we broke the curse, and the revenants went back to hell, don’t you think it’s time for us to bring her home? You, I mean you can bring her back home. Well, you and Doc, I guess. Or just you, you know. Ah, Jeremy shut up!”</p>
<p>“Jeremy?” She asked.</p>
<p>His eyebrows shot up on his forehead in excitement. “Yeah?”</p>
<p>“Shut up,” Wynonna sputtered. </p>
<p>“Okay, got it.”</p>
<p>“As much as I want Alice at the homestead,” The eldest Earp sighed, “I’m barely home myself. Finding Waverly has to be my top priority. I just don’t know how long she and Nicole can survive in the garden. From what Doc has told me, Nicole was half dead as it was.”</p>
<p>“Waverly is a fighter, Wynonna,” Robin reminded her. “She won’t give up without a fight.”</p>
<p>“But it’s not her fight to even be fighting!” She fisted the table. “It’s mine. This is my fault.”</p>
<p>“No, Wynonna, it’s not.” Jeremy punched the desk sternly. “The Earp curse wasn’t necessarily Waverly’s problem by blood, but she would never have left you to fight it on her own. This does not involve her Earp heritage, it is because of the angel blood within her veins.”</p>
<p>“Wait, hold up,” She cracked open a fresh bottle of beer as Robin passed out the plates. “Angels protect the garden, right?”</p>
<p>“I mean, from what we can conclude.” Jeremy replied.</p>
<p>“And Julian was wandering outside the Ghost River Triangle for how long?”</p>
<p>“I mean at least 24 years, because we know Ward pushed him out of the Triangle before Waverly’s birth.” Jeremy’s eyes bounced from Robin to Wynonna, trying to figure out what was spinning in their minds.</p>
<p>“And a guy has needs, right?”</p>
<p>“What?” Robin’s face paled from the sudden shift in conversation.</p>
<p>“Hear me out,” Wynonna said. “Maybe there is someone else with angel blood out there. Waverly can’t be the only one. Could his parents have had other children? Or did Julian father another child? Or does he have a brother, sister, niece, nephew, anyone? I mean, he has to have a family somewhere, right? Angels don’t fall from the sky.”<br/></p>
<p>“Actually…” Robin began.<br/>
</p>
<p>“I mean, I would guess he was born an angel. I don’t know if you can become an angel. From all the research I dug up from Black Badge, it is part of your DNA.” Jeremy agreed. “But none of this is fact, Wynonna, just assumptions. We would still have to locate a family that he never even knew he had and convince them to live eternity in the garden. This is a long shot. And by that, I mean like trying to get a touchdown from center court.”</p>
<p>“You’re trying!” Robin smirked at his boyfriend’s attempt at a sports analogy. “What would we say if we find someone with angel blood? Hey, want to go spend eternity in Paradise, watching the world from afar?”</p>
<p>“I mean I don’t know,” Wynonna said. “But it’s the only lead we have. Jeremy, can you hack into the Black Badge records and see if we can trace Julian’s DNA to any other blood lines? He would have undergone a physical before he took the fire fighting position. And I am sure they do a urine or blood test for drugs.”</p>
<p>Jeremy scooted his seat away from the table, “Absolutely.”</p>
<p>“No, no, not now,” Wynonna said. “I can’t believe I’m saying this but eat first. We still need to take care of ourselves and I hope Waverly and Nicole are too.”</p>
<p>“Trust me, Nicole won’t let her get hurt.” Jeremy walked to the desk and snatched the peanut butter from his desk drawer.</p>
<p>“Peanut butter?” A rumbling laugh spouted from Wynonna’s mouth for the first time in a decade. She snapped open her chopsticks and stabbed her food with certainty. </p>
<p>“Don’t knock it until you try it! Waverly’s got me addicted.” He scrunched into his rolling office chair and folding his legs underneath him. “Robin, can you pass me the sweet and sour soup?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>A boisterous grumble shocked Waverly from her restful, deep sleep. Her mind rattled as her eyes flicked toward the bright blue, cloudless sky, expecting to see the remnants of a thunderstorm or an earthquake. Instead, laughter broke from her mouth as she realized the noise was Nicole’s starving stomach.</p>
<p>“You need food,” Waverly shifted away from her warm, redheaded pillow. “Would you like to try random, possibly poisonous berries?”</p>
<p>“I would eat dirt right now if it had nutritional value.” Nicole smirked. </p>
<p>“I am so sorry for falling asleep on you.”</p>
<p>“I’m not.” Nicole smiled, brushing her blunt, but gentle fingertips through Waverly’s sweaty hair. “I’m sorry for drooling on your head.”</p>
<p>“It’s not the first time.” She smirked, elbowing the other woman’s side. “Let’s go find something to eat. Something that isn’t bugs or ends with us singing Hakuna Matata.”</p>
<p>“Have you ever climbed a tree?” Nicole questioned, her eyes wide with curiosity. </p>
<p>“What?” Waverly smirked. “Are you the tree?”</p>
<p>Nicole sputtered as dirty images saturated her mind, and an ache plagued her core. She opened and closed her mouth to respond, but her voice box disappeared. Instead, she pointed  at the tall but thin, textured tree trunk opposite of them. Feather like leaves fanned outward from the center, the late afternoon sun poking through the fronds. </p>
<p>“Holy shit!” Waverly exclaimed, her eyes lighting up like the sky during a thunderstorm. The once spruce tree across the forest floor had transformed to a vivacious coconut tree, with fruits sprouting near the tree trunk shaded by its lime green leaves. “Have those always been there?”</p>
<p>“I don’t know, I don’t think so.” Nicole held her steady, skillful hand to the other woman. “Do you think you can spot me?”</p>
<p>“What happened to me climbing the tree?” The shorter woman asked eagerly as she followed Nicole toward the full-grown plant.</p>
<p>“How about I climb the tree this time and you can climb it the next time?” The redhead stated. She thrust her form against the gnarled tree trunk, testing its strength and stability. “Plus, you’ll be a better catcher than I am.”</p>
<p>“The cheerleader is better at catching than a basketball player?” Waverly rolled her eyes. “Try again. I will let it go, this time.”</p>
<p> Nicole smirked as she turned to the task at hand. Reaching inches above her head, she wrapped her calloused hands around the thin, rough tree.  Happy with her grip, she hopped into the humid air, her well-worn sneakers colliding with the thin trunk. She scooted up as bark scratched and cut into her palms, harvesting blood in her wake like moss growing on the north side of the tree. Her tank top shifted up her long, slender abdomen, exposing her dirty, blood-soaked bandage to the rugged material. With each practical and instinctive movement, she thanked her ratty sneakers for their strong tread. </p>
<p>“How many times have you done this before, Haught?” Waverly shouted from the safe ground, dozens of feet away. She bit her rosy lower lip as Nicole’s taut muscles flexed and relaxed with each fluid action. Her tongue brushed against her lips as she took in the picturesque view of the other woman’s behind as she scooted further up the timber.  </p>
<p>“Not enough times to make me comfortable.” Nicole screamed into the void as her green pupils focused on the gray trunk. As the leaves sheltered her from the sun, she outstretched her form to grasp the fruit, but her soft fingers just brushed against it. A nightmarish snap filled her ears and goosebumps lined her arms as her butterfly stitches pulled away from her skin. </p>
<p>“Just a few centimeters higher,” Waverly shouted. “Maybe one more step.”</p>
<p>Nicole followed Waverly’s explicit directions and slid up the rough tree. She removed her right hand from the stabbing bark and leaned forward, reaching for the coconut. She glanced up to the sky to watch her grasp, but the wide overhanging leaves made her dizzy.</p>
<p>“A little to the left.” </p>
<p>Tilting to the left, Nicole’s fingers wrung around a medium-sized ripe coconut. “Are you ready? This will not be a great throw!”</p>
<p>“Just go for it!” Waverly shouted. Nicole chucked the rock-hard fruit in toward the silky voice. The youngest Earp sprinted to catch the coconut, but the round fruit slipped through her slender fingers. “I missed it!”</p>
<p>“That’s okay, it should still be good to eat.” Nicole continued, throwing one, two, three more coconuts onto the ground.</p>
<p>“I think we have enough coconuts!” The brunette yelled. “Please be careful.”</p>
<p>Nicole nodded as she shook with sheer exhaustion. She skidded down the tree; her hands painting the tree with her coppery red blood. She focused on the tree as she prayed with each sharp breath that her heavy forearms did not give way.</p>
<p>“Halfway!” Waverly urged her on as a pile of dried leaves rustled behind her. “I’m here to catch you!”</p>
<p>Nicole chuckled as she imagined the slender woman bracing herself for Nicole’s fall. As she reached ten feet from the soil, the redhead kicked off the tree. Her feet pounded against the matted grass and her Converse sneakers dipped into the dirt. She tugged her once white tank top, hiding her now red and irritated wound from Waverly’s worrying eyes. Nicole leaned against the tree’s rough trunk as a sunny smile cracked through her red cheeks. Mission accomplished. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Did you find anything?” Wynonna asked as she discarded her wool scarf and heavy jacket onto the floor. Kicking the articles underneath the desk, she moved behind Jeremy.</p>
<p>“I found out where Julian, well Charlie, had his physical before becoming a firefighter. I pretended to be Julian’s new doctor when I called the hospital and I requested a summary of the visit, his blood-type and whatever DNA they have on file.”</p>
<p>“Good,” Wynonna turned to the other man. “Robin? Anything?”</p>
<p>“I submitted his picture to Ancestry.com and other social media channels. Hopefully, we get a hit of a long-lost relative. He has to have a family somewhere. I also left voicemails at each of his employers before the Ghost River Triangle., hoping he had a next of kin listed..”</p>
<p>“I feel like we get so far,” Wynonna sighed, “But we have no leads. Nothing.”</p>
<p>“We will get there. We will figure this out.” Jeremy breathed confidence the rest of the team lacked. </p>
<p>“I went to the site of the stairs today,” Wynonna said. “Still snow covered, still invisible. Still no gate. No fresh footprints leading either toward or away from them.”</p>
<p>“We have had no recent snowfall, so we can assume they are still in the garden.” The taller man responded.</p>
<p>“Yeah.” She replied. “I stabbed a knife beside the stairs, because with each snowfall, it’s getting harder and harder for me to find them. I know you two don’t have that problem…”</p>
<p>“A knife? I half expected it to be a whiskey bottle!” Jeremy joked.</p>
<p>“Nah!” Wynonna laughed. “Waverly would kill me if she found out I polluted the environment! Heaven forbid!”</p>
<p>“Want to bet how long it will be until someone snatches that knife?” Jeremy quizzed.</p>
<p>“Three days?” Robin hypothesized. “Someone will steal it within three days.”</p>
<p>“I’m thinking two.”</p>
<p>“Okay, okay, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb, let’s get back to work! This is not solving anything.” Wynonna sprinted to the heavy wooden door.</p>
<p>“Where are you going?”</p>
<p>“To get myself a drink!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Do you have your knife?” Waverly asked, the four coconuts piled around her. </p>
<p>Nicole slipped the tool from her back pocket and handed it to Waverly with care. Her attention flickered to a dense, wild bush as an ominous shadow danced in the distance. She shook her head as she tried to rid her mind of the hallucination. It had to be her hunger causing her to hallucinate. “Can you open a coconut? Because the most I’ve seen is people smash them with rocks.”</p>
<p>“I mean that would work,” Waverly said, taping the black spots on the coconut with her fingertips. “But I’m hoping we can save the shell and use them to transport water.”</p>
<p>“That’s a brilliant idea!” </p>
<p>Finding the soft spot in the fruit, Waverly stabbed it with the sharp knife. Within seconds, coconut water started spilling from the surface. With gentle fingers, she handed the fruit to Nicole, who held the object to her dehydrated lips mouth. The younger Earp licked the juice from her digits one by one.</p>
<p>“Wow, I never thought coconut water could taste so good.” Nicole wiped her chin with the back of her hand. Her body felt reinvigorated from the electrolytes. She handed the hard fruit to the brunette. Confused, Waverly raised her eyebrows. “Your turn.”</p>
<p>“There’s three more,” The younger woman peered to the coconuts on her left side and set her soft palms on top. </p>
<p>“This one tastes better,” Nicole winked. “My lips have touched it.”</p>
<p>“You cocky little-” Waverly couldn’t help the laugh that fell from her lips. As she sipped from the coconut, she felt her veins plumping inside her. “You must feel better.”<br/>
</p>
<p>Nicole smirked, but her eyes flashed through the darkened forest. For a split second, she was certain her eyes had locked onto a familiar shadow.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment below!</p>
<p>As always, come find me on Twitter @FailedShipper91. I promise I won't bite, though I might be a bit wild!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. They Came in to a Sin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 5</p>
<p>“Did you see that?” Nicole glowered at the darkness. Using both her hands, she tore the knife out of the fruit, as if it was as easy as sliding her credit card for payment. </p>
<p>“I didn’t see-”</p>
<p>The older woman dashed to her feet, holding the knife in front of her as she would a gun, if only she had it on her. “Come out! Show yourself!”</p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly stood beside redhead. Nicole’s arm snaked around the brunette’s waist as she attempted to protect her from the unseen threat.</p>
<p>“I don’t see anyone,” she whispered.</p>
<p>“You’re not fooling anyone, asshole,” Nicole shouted with a voice full of authority. If she wasn’t scared shitless, maybe Waverly would have admitted it turned her on. Maybe, just maybe, she would.</p>
<p>Step by step, the tall shadow closed in on the two. </p>
<p>“Julian?” Nicole called, her world spinning. Her eyes flickered from the dead man in front of her to the shivering woman. “Waves he’s-”</p>
<p>“Dad?” Her voice quivered with nervousness. The redhead wrapped her arm around Waverly’s waist as the color drained from her face. Before she knew it, she held dead weight in her arms.</p>
<p>“Waverly!” He called as Nicole lowered her to the ground.</p>
<p>“What did you think would happen?” Nicole asked, frustration running across her features. “Sneaking up on us! How did you think she would react?”</p>
<p>“Look, I’ll just-” Julian turned to walk away, though Nicole knew he had the power to dissipate in seconds.</p>
<p>“No, you will wait here!” She dropped to her knees, locating the other woman’s steady pulse in an instant. “She’ll be okay in just a few minutes. You are here for a reason. Wait for her to wake.”</p>
<p>“I never got to thank you, you know,” Nicole said, her anger reducing to a simmer. She walked to the forgotten coconuts as the ghost followed close. “You know, for saving my life.”</p>
<p>“You’re good for her, you know,” Julian plucked the fruit from Nicole’s hand. </p>
<p>“I’m not too sure about that,” Nicole coughed, her fingers twitching with nervousness and anxiety. “Sometimes I think I am good for her, and other times I feel as though I’m a hinderance and she’s afraid to tell me to get out of her life.”</p>
<p>“I don’t think she feels that way,” He flipped the coconut over and stabbed the knife into its side. “She cares about you more than she lets on.”</p>
<p>Nicole grabbed another coconut and rolled it between her two palms. “If that were true, she wouldn’t have a boyfriend of ten years sitting at home.”</p>
<p>“Or maybe she’s afraid of what others might think. She is so afraid of disappointing everyone else, that she won’t follow what is in her heart. But I don’t have to tell you that, do I, Nicole? You know her better than she knows herself.” With one final snap, the Purgatory firefighter tore a nickel-sized piece of the fruit from the coconut. “Easy as pie.”</p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly’s weak voice trembled from the distance. The redhead sprinted toward the other woman. The long-forgotten coconut slipped from her hands and fell to the ground. </p>
<p>“Waves, I’m right here,” Nicole grasping the younger woman’s hand and held it up to her flushed cheek. “You’re okay.”</p>
<p>“I thought I had saw-”</p>
<p>“You did,” Nicole took a deep, exaggerated breath. “Your father is here. He wants to make sure you are safe. He’s like Juan Carlo, not a hallucination but-”</p>
<p>“Not alive either.” Waverly finished. Using the other woman’s strength, she ushered herself into a sitting position. “I got it. It was just shocking.”</p>
<p>“Waverly, are you feeling okay?” The redhead asked as her long, thin fingers completed the space left in Waverly’s hand. “You’ve given me a few scares.”</p>
<p>“Me?” She laughed. “Says the person who didn’t wake for who knows how long.”</p>
<p>“Fair.” Nicole smiled. “He wants to talk to you. Are you okay with that?”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Waverly’s sweaty palm tightened around the other woman’s hand as the redhead gestured toward the man to join the couple.</p>
<p>“Here, Waverly,” He handed her the water-filled coconut, then sat across from her on the ground, like a toddler at story time. “I’m sorry for startling you. That wasn’t my intention.”</p>
<p>“You thought stalking was better?” Waverly brought the coconut to her mouth for a long sip. </p>
<p>“No… yes…” Julian said. “I don’t know. I wanted to help, but I didn’t know how and I am not supposed to interfere. So, I thought, watching from afar would-”</p>
<p>“You know how you can help?” Waverly handed the coconut to Nicole. “Take your place as protector and let us leave.”</p>
<p>“Waverly, you know I can’t.” Julian said. “I’m not alive. I don’t want you to ruin your entire life in Purgatory. But I can’t. I don’t have a heartbeat, Waverly. I’m not alive.”</p>
<p>“Fine,” His daughter replied. Nicole released Waverly’s clenched hand and stepped away from the two. “Then open the gate and let us go home.”</p>
<p>“I would love to,” Julian told his daughter. “But I don’t have the power or control. Only the counsel does.”</p>
<p>“There has to be another way,” Waverly’s eyes followed the redhead as she walked back toward the group, a juggling the rough coconut between her hands. The older woman slid the split coconut into Waverly’s lap before falling to the ground by her side. “Neither Nicole nor I will become protector of the garden. We will not let you lock us here for eternity. I’m not letting her, and she won’t let me.”</p>
<p>“Eat,” Nicole said as she nudged the torn coconut in the other woman’s lap. “Please?”</p>
<p>With a warm and grateful smile, Waverly’s dirty nails dug into the fruit, desperate to remove the fleshy meat. </p>
<p>“One of you must take the place as protector,” Julian reminded them. “Then the gate will open and one of you can return to Purgatory.”</p>
<p>“Did the council approve my request to take her place?” Nicole peeled a small bit of fruit from the coconut in Waverly’s lap. </p>
<p>“Ignore that question, because I will not let her sacrifice herself.” Waverly shut her down within an instant. “Those are not viable options.”</p>
<p>“Look, while you are here in my land, I think someone would like to meet you.” Julian announced, his eyes looking anywhere but into the woman’s whose pupils matched his. “Another man is trapped here with you. He has lived here for decades, which could happen to you, too. He could be very important to you. Helpful, even.”</p>
<p>“What?” Waverly’s hopes perked. “Who is he? Can he take your position?”</p>
<p>“How can we find him?” Nicole asked.</p>
<p>“I’ve said too much,” Julian ended as he felt his dead body transform into a lifeless state. “Tell him I sent you.”</p>
<p>“Don’t go,” Waverly whispered, like a child watching her parent leaving for work, with no idea when she would see him again.</p>
<p>“Tell him who I am.” He commanded as his form turned more translucent with every passing breath. “I’ll never be far, okay? Waverly, you were the best part of my thousand-year life.”</p>
<p>In the blink of an eye, he left Waverly with just another memory of a father leaving. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Where is she?” He bellowed as he stumbled into the Black Badge office, his eyes blood-red, and his breath wreaking of alcohol.</p>
<p>“The actual question is,” Wynonna didn’t even dare to look up from the historical files. “Where have you been?”</p>
<p>“I’ve been busy!” His patience dwindled as his words slurred, a side effect from the blood alcohol content coursing through his veins..</p>
<p>“Busy sleeping with Stephanie Jones,” Wynonna muttered.</p>
<p>“Wynonna…” Jeremy did not look up from the computer monitor, but she could feel his stern, rough glare.</p>
<p>“Well, if you had checked your phone or even thought about your girlfriend during the past three days,” She bit the inside of her lip. “You would know she is missing.”</p>
<p>“Missing?” Champ thudded into the chair opposite of her and kicked his muddy boots on her desk. The smell of alcohol mixed with nicotine burned her nostrils. “What do you mean? Missing?”</p>
<p>“Missing, gonzo, poof.”</p>
<p>He slammed his fists on the table. “You think I’m stupid, don’t you?”</p>
<p>Wynonna chuckled, causing daggers to shoot from Jeremy’s eyes. If only he was closer, if only she could reach him, she would have kicked him in the shin, hard. </p>
<p>“No Champ,” Jeremy once tried to sympathize with Champ, but he was just another bully. The sound of Champ’s voiced teleported him back to a time when he would get his head stuffed into a toilet daily.  Why would Waverly stay with someone who was the exact opposite as she? He knew the correct answer, but he refused to admit it. Waverly was stronger than Champ, and she deserved so much better than him. He knew she just needed to work through her insecurities first. “We don’t know where she went, one minute she was here, the next minute she vanished.”</p>
<p>“I bet you she’s with that bitch.”</p>
<p>“What?” Wynonna squinted up from her work for the first time since he had arrived. She analyzed his disheveled appearance, knowing he must not have slept much in the past week. </p>
<p>“I’m not stupid.” Champ repeated, reminding her of a toddler being told no. “She ran off with that dyke and you two are covering for her.”</p>
<p>“What?” Wynonna to get could feel her figure shivering with anger and frustration. “That dyke’s name is Nicole. And she could have your ass arrested in a split second.”</p>
<p>“Nicole!” Champ  rolled the chair into the hallway, screaming. “Nicole, get your ass up here now!!” </p>
<p>“What are you doing?” Robin shepherded the hungover, garbling man into the office as he balanced three extra-large coffees in his arms. </p>
<p>“Making an ass of himself,” Wynonna smirked as she took the boiling liquid from him. She took a sip, burning her taste buds. “So hot, so good.”</p>
<p>“See, she’s not here.” Champ announced. </p>
<p>“What are you still doing here?” Wynonna asked.</p>
<p>“Nicole Haught kidnapped my girlfriend. I’m going downstairs to report her.”</p>
<p>“You must be joking.” Wynonna said. “Nicole Haught cares about your girlfriend more than you ever have.”</p>
<p>“That is a problem!” Champ spat. “She keeps trying to get her filthy, dirty, perverted hands on my girlfriend. And she won’t get the hint. Waverly likes dick- specifically, my dick.”</p>
<p>“Robin, can you show this man out?” She took a deep breath as she tried to control her bubbling anger. If she had escorted him to the door herself, she would have strangled him.</p>
<p>“You got it.” He agreed. </p>
<p>“You can’t get rid of me forever, Wynonna!” He screamed as the taller man shoved him into the hallway.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Shit its cold,” Waverly rubbed her hands together with vigour, trying to create excess heat. “Shouldn’t paradise be warm?”</p>
<p>“That’s what I thought, too,” Nicole's eyes watched the sun dip just below the horizon. “I did not want to make a fire and attract creatures or revenants or whatever the hell is lurking here. But we don’t have a choice. Its nippy, and I don’t think my emergency blanket is enough to keep us warm enough tonight.”</p>
<p>“Here, let me give you your uniform shirt.” The younger woman sat beside her, adorned in her own clothes, hoodie, and Nicole’s police shirt.</p>
<p>“No, no, keep it.” Nicole stood in her tank top and shorts as the chilly air nibbled at her skin.</p>
<p>“No, don’t leave,” Waverly whined. “Too cold.”</p>
<p>“But now you get the whole blanket.” Nicole smirked as she shoved dry sticks into her palms.</p>
<p>Waverly pulled the blanket to her chin and wrapped it around like a cocoon. “Not the same. You are much warmer.”</p>
<p>“That’s why they call me Haught!” Nicole chuckled. In the darkness, Waverly could barely see Nicole’s wink, but she knew it was there.</p>
<p>“Okay, so Waverly Earp,” The redhead dropped leaves, sticks, and a small log at her feet. “Are you ready to watch as I make a fire without matches?”</p>
<p>“Out of all that shit you have in your bag; you don’t have matches?” She asked in astonishment.</p>
<p>“Ah, no.” Nicole laughed. “Why would I carry around something I don’t need?”</p>
<p>“Oh, look at you. So hot you don’t need matches.”</p>
<p>“I bring the flame!” Nicole smirked. She gripped the knife from her back pocket, slicing tiny notches in the log. She shoved a medium-sized twig into the indentation and then rolled the stick in her hands with increasing pressure and pace. Waverly’s eyes lit up in amazement when a short, glowing ember emitted from the log.</p>
<p>“I thought that was Hollywood magic,” Waverly said. The other woman blew softly on the ember until flames sparked.</p>
<p>“Look at that!” Nicole dashed to her feet as the leaves around the log caught alight. “I am the master.”</p>
<p>“Okay, master,” Waverly chuckled. “Get your ass back here and keep me warm.”</p>
<p>“So needy.” Nicole sat beside the girl.</p>
<p>“And you love it.” Waverly wrapped her up in the blanket, her frigid skin the opposite of her warmness.</p>
<p>“You’re right, I do.” She replied as her eyes got lost in the warm fire in front of her. </p>
<p>“Look who it is,” A voice called, forcing Nicole and Waverly to drop their eye contact with their heat source. A terrible rumble ripped deep from within the belly of the garden, striking fear into the two young woman. “My future wife.”</p>
<p>“Oh god,” Nicole rolled her eyes. The ground moved as if it were a wave at sea; the trees that stood for centuries crumbled onto the ground, trapping Waverly and Nicole. “Not this asshole.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Nothing But Ruined Pride</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heyo!!!! Welcome back to this lovely fic! Hope you are enjoying it! I have insecurities about this one, so each time I post I am like ahhh.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for reading and sticking around!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 6</p>
<p>Lightening lit the sky in a brilliant white streak, as gray fog rolled through the deciduous forest, embracing every centimeter of dry, fertile ground. Roaring thunder rumbled throughout, as if it competed with the quake over which could cause more destruction. Nicole pushed past the boy man, taking in the downed trees piled centimeters away from where they sat.</p>
<p>“Champ!” Waverly’s face paled in embarrassment and guilt, as if her boyfriend caught her doing something naughty. An icy wave chilled Nicole’s core as she analyzed the other woman's tone. “How did you get in here? How did you find us?”</p>
<p>“I was looking for you, Waverly.” Champ encircled the brunette in a bone-crushing hug. Another earthquake shock struck, its ripping sound magnitudes louder than its competition. “I miss you. My body misses you.”</p>
<p>Streaks of lightning cracked across the black foreground, followed by another roar of violent thunder. </p>
<p>“I’m happy to see you, Champ,” Waverly’s voice sounded forced, fake, and so un-Waverly. Nicole’s limbs trembled from the natural disaster as an inner war raged within her. Did she protect Waverly or leave her be?</p>
<p>“I’m sure you are, I mean who wouldn’t be.” He laughed. The dried ground spliced in half right in between Waverly’s legs. “I’m here to save you, like I always have to!”</p>
<p>“When have you ever saved the day?” Nicole cursed her lack of self-control. Waverly deserved more than this asshole. Another roar of thunder pierced the redhead’s eardrums, causing her to peer up at the black sky.</p>
<p>“Nicole!” Waverly groaned at the redhead’s disdain. Another rolling tremor shook the weakened ground below her. The first layer of dirt ripped underneath her as if she was standing stood upon a thin piece of paper instead of a solid ground. </p>
<p>“Sorry,” The redhead apologized as she hung her head in disappointment. Arguing with Champ only made things worse for the youngest Earp. She needed to be quiet. Instead, she turned to the downed trees, focusing on their escape route. Removing herself from the equation was best for Waverly, always. She was not part of this argument. </p>
<p>“No,” Champ shoved himself passed Waverly and stalked to the redhead with inconceivable anger. He towered over her form and asserted his power and dominance. Jagged flashes of pure light cast a glow against the monochromatic background. “What does this faggot have to say?”</p>
<p>“What?” Waverly’s head snapped toward him. The violent wind whipped the luscious brunette hair around her face as a numbing coldness gripped her heart. “Champ I-”</p>
<p>“Why do you think you are better than me, bitch?” Flashes of red streaked through his eyes as his fists trembled with emotion. Carnage ensued; trees writhed and flailed, their groans of pain hushed by the wild wind. </p>
<p>Nicole released a frustrated sigh but bit her tongue to keep herself from speaking the truth. A metallic taste lined her taste buds. </p>
<p>“Have you been drinking, Champ?” The shorter woman asked. The wind screamed like a banshee, its volume uprooting weeds and shrubs in a fit of ever-consuming rage. </p>
<p>“Don’t you walk away from me!” He stumbled as the ground lurched yet again. He snatched the redhead’s arm with such force she knew from her basketball days that her shoulder joint popped out of its socket. He spun her around, forcing her to look into his red pupils. “You are not better than me.”</p>
<p>“Champ,” Waverly’s arm jerked forward, but he was just out of reach. The trees above her creaked as though their limbs were seconds away from splitting in two. </p>
<p>“Do you know I don’t even put gluten in this body?” He told the redhead yet again. Green leaves fell from the once healthy trees, their protection from the sun now ammunition in the gale. “And you, you’re just a woman. Why do you think you’re better? You will never have what I have. And she will never want you.”</p>
<p>“I never…” Nicole started, but decided it was best to ignore his ignorance. She recognized the signs; he was out of control. If they were home, she would have thrown him in the drunk tank in an instant. Waverly tried to maneuver around her boyfriend to force her tiny figure between the two of them.</p>
<p>“I want you to witness this. Maybe you will back off.” He commanded. Nicole’s eyes widened as the enormous cracks in the ground splintered off into narrower ones.  For the first time since his arrival, Champ spun away from the redhead, causing her worry doubled in size; She needed his anger directed at her.</p>
<p>“Waverly Earp,” Champ dug into his pocket and held out a small, velvet box. Several remaining trees around them did not sway, instead they bent and moaned as the ground shook. “My entire life, I looked for a princess who could treat me like a prince. And here you are. Will you be mine?”</p>
<p>Waverly’s eyes danced around from Nicole’s nervous pale face to Champ’s angry bright red one. This could not have been happening. Bare trees pounded the ground one after another after another, their roots stretching into the sky like spider webs. </p>
<p>“Champ, I…” Waverly started as ripples forked across the ground. The gears in her mind spun out of control; she needed to get Nicole away from the miniature Hulk.</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Nicole pivoted as a yet another tree fell in the quake’s path of destruction. The magnets in her brain pulsed before clicking together. “He’s not real. This isn’t real.”</p>
<p>“What?” Waverly’s attention moved to the sheriff. For a split second, the ground stilled, and silence filled the air. </p>
<p>“It’s like Widow Beth,” Nicole explained, her eyes locking on her. “This is the garden playing tricks on us.”</p>
<p>Without warning, Champ drove police officer against one of the many fallen pine trees. A sharp jolt shook the entire garden. “You filthy petty bitch. I almost had her.” </p>
<p>“Get your fucking hands off of me,” The redhead cursed. What didn’t the boy man understand; she could drop him to the ground without breaking a sweat! The ground shook once, then twice.</p>
<p>“Hey Champ,” Waverly called. As soon as he turned, she kneed him below the waist. Wailing, he crumbled to the ground like a pile of dirt. With a hand clutched around his privates, he disappeared right before them. “I will not marry you, ever.”</p>
<p>“Phew,” Nicole shoved her hand into her pocket, her ears turning red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger. “I said it before, and I will say it again. No one should mess with you. Damn.”</p>
<p>Hazel pupils attempted to meet green ones, but the redhead’s eyes drifted away, as if she could not look Waverly in the eye. “I was not going to say yes.”</p>
<p>“Waves,” The redhead reassured. “This is your life. I want you happy.”</p>
<p>“I know,” She admitted. Where could she find this happiness? </p>
<p>“Take this blanket.” Nicole shuffled further and further from the brunette, “You must be freezing.”</p>
<p>“Nicole?”</p>
<p>“Yeah?” </p>
<p>“Thank you for always taking care of me.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The loud knocking disrupted Wynonna from her light sleep. God damn it, she had just drifted to sleep! She wanted to let the intruder freeze their balls off outside, but she what if it was Waverly? Then again, why wouldn’t she have used the spare key? </p>
<p>“I’m coming!” Wynonna called as she bounded the stairs, her tired eyes glancing at the ancient man fast asleep on the couch. Barely opening her eyes, Wynonna unlocked the door, the frosty air flooding the once warm home.<br/>“I need to talk to you,” Champ pushed her into the homestead and slammed the door behind him. </p>
<p>“What have you been drinking, Champ?” She asked. “It’s the middle of the night!”</p>
<p>Feet away, the once-upon-a-time vampire stirred in his sleep.</p>
<p>“You let that monster live here and not me?” Champ asked as though he was the victim. </p>
<p>“Champ, what are you doing here.” She bit back again.</p>
<p>Slipping his fingertips into his skin-tight jeans, he drew out a small velvet box. “It’s for Waverly.”</p>
<p>“Are you sure it’s not for Stephanie?”</p>
<p>“What?” He quizzed, dumbfounded.</p>
<p>“Are you here asking my permission, or telling me?” Wynonna asked.</p>
<p>“Telling you,” He slipped the box back in his pocket. “I am the best man she has ever dated. You should be happy for her.”</p>
<p>“You keep telling yourself that,” Wynonna ushered him out the door. “This couldn’t wait for the morning. Have a good night, Champ.”</p>
<p>“I’m not feeling so good,” He laid his hand on his forehead. “Can I  stay here tonight?”</p>
<p>“No,” She shoved him out the door, and slammed it before he could utter another word. “She better not say yes.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sunlight poked through the dark, thick gray clouds and beat onto the wet forest floor. The brightness shined into Waverly’s hazel eyes, waking her from her warm, restful slumber. Blinking her eyes to readjust her focus, a smile that flared across her face. As gentle as possible, she slipped her hand out from underneath the blanket and tenderly tucked the fallen red strands behind the other woman’s ear. </p>
<p>Waverly expected the other woman to stir, but the reaction was the exact opposite of what she expected. A soft snore departed the redhead’s mouth from her total exhaustion. The slumbering woman’s lips parted and fiery breath tickled against the brunette’s nose. Waverly bit her lip as the dirty thoughts running through her mind. How easy would it be to brush her mouth against Nicole’s soft, shiny red lips? What would she taste like? Would she moan her name or would she beg her for more?</p>
<p>She took a deep breath, forcing her raging hormones back into jail. She leaned in as her teeth cut open her dried, chapped lips. Instead of marking the correct destination, she hesitated, skimming her lips against the crown of red hair dancing across the other woman’s forehead.  </p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly cooed, her fingers caressing the redhead’s cheek. Still, she didn’t stir. The brunette swept her lips against the taller woman’s nose, successful at rousing her from her slumber. </p>
<p>“Good morning,” The Earp said, her smile bright enough to light the forest during its most treacherous storm.</p>
<p>Nicole’s eyes widened as her she took in their position. “Shit, I’m so sorry.”</p>
<p>“For?”</p>
<p>The redhead’s eyes pinged back and forth between Waverly and her own position. She needed to get out and quick.</p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly dropped a kiss on her cheek. “Thank you for-”</p>
<p>“I’m going to,” Nicole jumped from Waverly as if the other woman’s skin burned. The northern breeze thrashed against the shorter woman, causing goosebumps to line her limbs.</p>
<p>“Don’t go,” Waverly whined to the quiet garden.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Got your bags packed?” Jeremy barged through the front door of the homestead, waking up both the occupants.</p>
<p>“Bags of weed?” Wynonna replied. “Hell yeah! I’ve had those puppies packed for weeks!” </p>
<p>“No,” Jeremy held his head in disdain. “Do you have your bags packed so we can get the hell out of here!”</p>
<p>Robin stepped into the house proudly but froze when his eyes fell upon Doc Holliday sleeping on the couch. “We have some researching to do.”</p>
<p>“What?” Wynonna asked. “You found someone?”</p>
<p>“Well, maybe,” Jeremy said. “Robin and I found someone who might be related to Charlie.”</p>
<p>“So you’re hoping…”</p>
<p>“Charlie and her are relatives, yes.” Jeremy responded.</p>
<p>“Or her husband is, or she knows someone related to him.” Robin filled in. “We need answers.”</p>
<p>“And we won’t find out until we talk to her.” The shorter man concluded.</p>
<p>“But what about Waverly?” Wynonna paused. “What if she comes home?”</p>
<p>“Well, Doc’s here. Could he could let us know as soon as she returns?”</p>
<p>“If he wakes up in a normal human state, he can. Sometimes he wakes with the vilest hallucinations and delusions.” Wynonna admitted. “I best call Champ. When we far enough away from that cry baby.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Nicole left hours earlier and had yet to return. After staying still like a sitting duck for hours, Waverly decided she needed to move. She snatched the two empty coconuts and the backpack; the least she could do was get them water.</p>
<p>As she walked for several long, grueling hours, or was it only minutes, the sun scorching her now tan back. Sweat trailed her neck and pebbled on her chest. She wiped the droplets from her face with the back of her hand, leaving a slight stain of mud on her forehead. With each step, nausea bubbled within. Seconds later, she fell to her hands and knees, retching onto the forest's soft, packed dirt. </p>
<p>Waverly wrapped her arms around her knees as she waited for her stomach to settle from the sudden storm blustering inside. And it did. Without a hesitation, her feet once again pounded the path to the river. </p>
<p>Her calves burned as she ventured up the last hill toward the water source. Her mouth salivated in thirst as she envisioned the water just minutes away. Who decided that paradise should have hills? Shouldn’t it be flat? From on top of the largest hill, her hazel pupils spotted a flash of red hair in the water. </p>
<p>She debated interrupting the other woman, but decided against it; there was a reason Nicole was alone. There was no harm in staying close to ensure her safety, right? She dropped the backpack to the ground and flung herself onto the ground. Leaning against the tree trunk, she felt the sun embrace her like a warm hug. Closing her eyelids, she attempted to rest, but with each splash below, she poked her head up, eyes locked on Nicole.<br/>Waverly’s eyes followed Nicole as she dove in and out of the murky water, effortless and relaxing. When she floated to the top of the water, Waverly noticed she was fully naked. Her cheeks blushed a brilliant red as her eyes traced the redheads’s every curve. How would it feel to brush her fingertips against her smooth, bare skin? She would beg for more, right?</p>
<p>After one final dunk under the water, Nicole planted her feet on the rocky river bottom. Step by step, she walked out of the water, running her hand through her now soaked hair. As if in slow motion, the water sank, and her creamy skin became exposed to wandering eyes. Specifically, Waverly’s wandering eyes. The younger woman’s gasped for air as her heartbeat raced and her breath became haggard. An ache pounded between her legs as her mind wandered, imagining the other woman’s naked form straddling her own.</p>
<p>The redhead grabbed her small pile of sandy clothes from the shoreline. Glancing up. she watched Waverly’s fleeting form as she shrunk back into the forest.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What is wrong with me?” Nicole yelled as her voice pounded against the ancient tree trunks and echoed in the empty forest.</p>
<p>Waverly’s head spun around as the frustrated voice rang in her ears like a smoke detector beeping in the middle of the night. “What?”</p>
<p>“I saw you!” Nicole punched the tree trunk. The rough bark cut through her white knuckles at once. “I saw you at the water.”</p>
<p>Waverly’s cheeks blushed. Nicole caught her red-handed. “I just…”</p>
<p>“When we met, you said you were okay with me being me.” Nicole fired. “But now-”</p>
<p>“What?” Waverly sputtered. “Nicole, I don’t-”</p>
<p>“And maybe you don’t have a problem with other people, but with me.” Nicole said, her voice cracking with emotion.. “But as soon as you get a whiff I have a crush on you, you are afraid of me. Come on, Waverly, just admit it. Admit that you are afraid to be alone with me! That way we can go on our separate ways-”</p>
<p>“Wait what?” A crush? Since when?</p>
<p>“You saw me at the river.” Nicole ran her distraught fingertips through her hair. “You saw that I was naked, and you thought I would put you in a strange position. Well you know what, I, unlike your boyfriend, can keep it in my pants.”</p>
<p>“Nicole, I don’t-”</p>
<p>The redhead continued her tirade. “And everyone’s like ‘tell her, Nicole, she won’t treat you any different.’ And so I say bullshit. This is why so many women never tell their best friends they are in love with them.”</p>
<p>Love? </p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly leaned forward, but the woman just swatted her away.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry you are with me when you would rather be here with your boyfriend.” </p>
<p>Before Waverly could utter another word, Nicole stormed into the darkened forest, and the brunette wasn’t sure she would come back before nightfall. She wouldn’t get any sleep if the redhead didn’t return. Waverly needed to see the redhead's face, and she needed to tell her-</p>
<p>Love?</p>
<p>Tears fell from Waverly’s cheeks, like a waterfall after seven days and seven nights of rain. She sobbed into her arms until another wave of nausea hit her. Turning to the side, she vomited over the roots of yet another oak tree.</p>
<p>“Like father, like daughter,” His voice made the crows cry high above her head, and her blood run cold. Squatting on the ground beside her, he smacked his palm against her back as she choked one last time, as if that was in any way helpful. </p>
<p>“Get the fuck away from me.” Waverly spit as yellow flames flickered and danced within his retinas.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Come find me on Twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. A Vixen, A Glutton, And Destruction for Fun</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>*glares at the number of chapters, trying to determine if that is correct* I think I might be a few off...</p>
<p>I have been fiddling with the chapters, combining many to make sure each is at least 2,000 words. I want to make it worth it for you! </p>
<p>Here's another chapter! I don't even know what chapter I am on! Thanks for reading and leaving comments and kudos!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 7</p>
<p>Waverly soared to her feet, wiping the spew from her chin with the back of her hand. She sped away from his outreached grasp before he could take another breath. The flickering, weaving alfalfa flame caught her eye as it searched for more pine to light.</p>
<p>“Is that how you talk to your father?” Ward stalked after her like a man on a mission.</p>
<p>“You aren’t my father.” Waverly’s eyes darted between the maze of trees standing before her. If she ran, could he catch to her?</p>
<p>“Is that what your mother told you?” Ward laughed, a damned devil's roar, causing confusion to furrow across her brows. “She was always one insane bitch. She always hallucinated.”</p>
<p>“Stop,” Waverly commanded, but he bounded forward. Glowing embers leapt and twirled inches above the ground, twinkling like stars in the air before falling to earth and setting alight the tinder, dry paradise.  “Julian is my father. And you’re the reason he didn’t raise me.”</p>
<p>Ward slammed his fist into the angry tree bark. The movement causing her hair to rustle in the breeze. The garden trapped her. Or was it her father? He continued: “He didn’t raise you because he didn’t love you. He didn’t want you, Waverly.”</p>
<p>“And what? You did?” Using her height to her advantage, she ducked under his arm and sped away from his violent form. </p>
<p>“No, I didn’t want you either,” His sinister grin gave Waverly goosebumps. Beside him, thick, black smoke billowed into the skies as the flame licked the ground, like a thirsty kitten beside a milk bowl. “But I raised you, didn’t I?”</p>
<p>“Is that what you called it?” Waverly’s pupils widened as he sipped beer from a glass bottle. Was that there just minutes prior? “You didn’t raise me, you abused and neglected me.”</p>
<p>“Neglect? I provided you with a home, with a shelter. Did you have food on your plate?” He glared at the younger girl as he waited for her response. “Well, did you?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” Waverly gulped,  his anger and frustration roaring to life before his eyes. Memories flashing back to his habitual violence when she was a child shifted into the forefront of her mind. Never again. </p>
<p>“Your sister was more neglectful than I was,” He held the bottle of beer at a 90-degree angle, the contents spilling all onto his chin and his heaving chest. The once pale blue sky became shielded by a veil of darkness as the smoke cloud multiplied and swallowed up the sky. “You are stuck here, without food and water. The only thing you didn’t have growing up was love, and hey look, you don’t have it here either. She left you Waverly, just like everyone does.”</p>
<p>Tears welled in Waverly’s eyes; it was hard enough to think it herself, but it was even more horrifying coming from another mouth. From her own father’s lips. She wouldn’t let him see her cry. Not again. </p>
<p>“You’re right! As a child, I had a father who didn’t give a shit about me and a mother who ran at the first chance she had. But now, I know what actual love is, actual love, not the love you kidded Wynonna and Willa into thinking they had. But who am I kidding, you were incapable of loving them...” Hot ribbons of light danced up the elm trees, transforming the wood into hot, fiery disasters in the making. </p>
<p>“Who do you have? Champ?” Ward stepped forward as he attempted to corner her into a box yet again. “Champ knows you are only good for a roll in the hay. Just like your mother.”</p>
<p>“I have Wynonna-”</p>
<p>“Who loves whiskey more than she could ever love anyone.”</p>
<p>“And Nicole-”</p>
<p>“That woman is the biggest pervert that I’ve ever seen!” He gulped the last sip from the bottle and then smashed it against the elm tree. Shards of glass flew into the air, with one ripping into the soft skin of her left cheek. She pressed her digit against the wound then snatched it away, checking for signs of blood. “I need more alcohol.”</p>
<p>Waverly returned her hand to the gash as she created pressure, hoping to stop the bleeding. Her eyes caught the hungry flames, her pupils turning into bright orange saucers from the raging flame. “Wow, I didn’t realize you would be an ass in the afterlife, too!”</p>
<p>“An ass? Is that what you think of me?” Ward’s ears turned red, and his breathing became harsh. He wound his palm as if preparing to slap his youngest daughter. Waverly could not help but flinch. “An ass you are still afraid of, I see.”</p>
<p>“That makes you happy?” She tried to dip away, but he held his position. She pressed her hand to her face, positive it was alight. “You enjoy having a daughter petrified of you?”</p>
<p>He slammed his fist into the tree yet again. Waverly she should see blood trailing his arm by now, but it wasn’t. A loud crack resounded throughout the forest. “You’re not my daughter, as you made clear a few minutes ago.”</p>
<p>“You’re right, you aren’t my father. You meant nothing to me. All you provided was a place to keep me warm and safe, and you couldn’t even do that right!”</p>
<p>Ward’s evil, maniacal laugh caused shivers to run down her arms. “I controlled you then, and I control you now. Here, your destiny lies in my hands.”</p>
<p>“What?” Smoke filled her lungs, causing her to choke and gasp for more air. </p>
<p>“You heard me,” His smile burned into Waverly’s soul  as bile rose in her throat. “If you complete my ask, you can leave. But who am I kidding, you aren’t good at listening.”</p>
<p>“Making a deal with you is like making one with the devil.” She tugged her shirt up to her nose, desperate to stop the smog from entering her passage ways. </p>
<p>“You think I’m the devil?” Ward chuckled, “You must be joking. I’m a rose garden compared to him.”</p>
<p>Distracted, his grip loosened and the younger woman slipped right away from her position between him and the scratchy tree.  For a split second, she had the upper hand.</p>
<p>“Lets hear this, Ward,” Waverly tormented. “What do you want me to do?”</p>
<p>“Oh, so you are interested in making a deal with the devil?”</p>
<p>“It depends what your mission is.” She said, acting disengaged. Flames licked against her skin.</p>
<p>The smile on Ward’s face even lit up his two eyes. “Here on paradise, we have limited amounts of alcohol.”</p>
<p>“For good reasoning.” She replied. The sound crackling and popping of pine blistered around the forest. </p>
<p>“Three miles away is a cave filled with aged wine and whiskey barrels from centuries.”</p>
<p>“And what?” Waverly rolled her eyes. He hadn’t changed in the slightest. “You expect me to bring you some liquor?”</p>
<p>“No,” He laughed. “I expect you to let me in the cave. Only an angel can open the gate.”</p>
<p>“You all like angels, don’t you?” Waverly muttered. She focused on each of her five senses, desperate to find a way out. “What is in it for me? Because I do nothing for free.”</p>
<p>“If you bring me to the alcohol, I will let you and your perverted lover leave.”</p>
<p>“And if I say no?”</p>
<p>Ward’s eyes darkened. “Frankly, I am giving you an offer you can’t refuse.”</p>
<p>“Yeah?” A mischievous glint sparkled in her eyes. Hungry flames stroked her warm denim and melted the rubber soles of her sneakers. “Try me. You think, after everything you’ve done to me, I would help you?”</p>
<p>“Excuse me?” He coughed as the smoke filled his own lungs. “Do you think you have a choice in the matter? Because you don’t.”</p>
<p>“You said I could help you or stay here. I want to stay.”</p>
<p>“You were always the dumbest one in the family, you filthy bitch.”</p>
<p>“I’m the smartest, thank you.” Waverly chuckled, causing Ward’s anger to boil. His figure became darker and harder to distinguish, as the flames spit up all around them. </p>
<p>“You think you can say no to me?” He took a step forward, and another, and another, blocking the younger girl from leaving. A large waft of smoke cut through his throat and further into his lungs. His eyes glossed over from the smog. “You will get the alcohol, got it?”</p>
<p>“No,” Through the dark gray smog, her vision latched onto his red, watery, soulless eyes. </p>
<p>“You are just like your mother, and you will get the same punishment she did when she refused me.” He leaned forward and smacked his once upon a time daughter across the face. Tears formed in her ducts, but she kept her emotions locked in a vault. “Would you like me to hit you again, you, girl? Do you want to see what your mother had to deal with trying to protect your worthless ass?”</p>
<p>“What don’t you understand, Ward?” Waverly laughed, but her lungs burned as if they were decaying into dust like the surrounding garden. “I’m not a child anymore. Try as hard as you can, but I’m not. I’m stronger than you, and smarter than you. You have zero control over me or anyone in my life.”</p>
<p>Waverly untucked her pocketed hand into the searing heat. She squeezed the top of his shoulders with her hands, and prepared to push him with all her might, but with a silent nudge, he obliterated into thin air.</p>
<p>Waverly crumbled to the ground as her emotions spewed out in heavy, heaping sobs. The flames diminished into small embers, but the smoke remained. With each blink, the garden returned to its prior state.</p>
<p>“Waverly!” Nicole fell to her knees when she caught sight of the other woman’s emotional display. She tried to wrap her arms around the younger girl, but Waverly shoved away with such dominant force that she fell onto her back. </p>
<p>“Do not touch me,” Waverly spit through gritted teeth.</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Nicole tried to reach out again, but dropped her hand just before it contacted with her skin. “It’s me, its Nicole. What’s wrong? What happened?”</p>
<p>She jerked to her feet without taking another look at the sympathetic redhead. “I know who you are, and I want you to leave me alone.”</p>
<p>Nicole took a deep breath as she watched the other woman’s fleeting form, her body begging her to stay but her heart daring her to chase the other woman.  </p>
<p>“Waverly!” Nicole called. Using her long, muscular legs, she caught up to the other woman in an instant.</p>
<p>She turned, her teeth gritted in frustration. “I told you to leave me alone.”</p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole lowered her voice. “What happened?”</p>
<p>“Do you want to know what happened?” She poked the taller woman in the chest with each word which fell from her mouth. “You left.”</p>
<p>“I know I did but you-”</p>
<p>“I needed you,” Tears fell from her cheeks and sprinkled onto the dirt ground. “And you weren’t there.”</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Nicole dropped her shoulders as a sigh escaped her lips. “I know you think you needed me, but you didn’t. Whatever happened, Waves, you didn’t need me. You are strong enough to beat every problem on your own. And yes, I love being by your side, but you don’t need me.”</p>
<p>“I’m so sick of this, Nicole,” She pounded her fists against the other woman’s chest. “Every single time I close my eyes, they’re haunting me. And I just can’t take it anymore!”</p>
<p>“Who, Waves. Who is haunting you?”</p>
<p>“First it was the widows, then it was Champ, and now my father! I can’t take it anymore.” The younger woman pooled into Nicole’s arms, crying into her shoulder and shaking in her grip.</p>
<p>“I’ve got you Waves, I’m here.”</p>
<p>“And how do I know you’re real?” Waverly asked. “How do I know you aren’t one of them?”</p>
<p>The redhead pulled away, but kept her green eyes locked on the brunette. Reaching forward, Nicole wiped the brunette’s tears with the pads of her digit. She grasped Waverly’s hand like a delicate treasure and anchored it upon her chest. </p>
<p>“You feel that, Waves?” Nicole asked. “You see how fast my heart is beating right now? That’s for you, because of you. It worried me that something happened to you when I left, and I wouldn’t be able to survive if something happened.”</p>
<p>Nicole gathered the other woman back in her arms and lay a gentle kiss on her crown. “You don’t need me, Waves, but I’m here for you. I’m here to help you. I will always be by your side.”</p>
<p>Waverly shoved Nicole away as her the actual reason she was mad at Nicole resurfaced. “You left me, Nicole. You left me just like everyone in my family has. Everyone always leaves me! This is just further proof of it!”</p>
<p>Nicole chased after her; she wouldn’t let Waverly escape her sight. “But I came back, Waverly. I will always come back to you!”</p>
<p>Waverly spun, her eyes locking onto hers like a magnet to a piece of compass. “Why, Nicole?”</p>
<p>“Why what?” </p>
<p>“Why won’t you leave me?” The shorter woman reiterated. “Why are you different from the rest of them?”</p>
<p>“Because…” Nicole’s body shook with fear and anxiety. “Waverly, I can’t. Please don’t ask me that.”</p>
<p>“I need to know, Nicole. I need to hear it.” She pleaded. “Why won’t you leave me? What makes you different from Champ or Ward, hell even Wynonna?”</p>
<p>“Because…” The redhead took two steps forward. Her hand snaked around Waverly’s waist. Inhaling deeply, pineapple filled her lungs from Waverly’s shampoo, the slightest tinge remaining from home. Her warm, trembling fingertips move higher, this time brushing against Waverly’s cheek, cupping her face as if she was the most precious piece of china on earth.  Nicole’s tongue flicked from her mouth, tracing the outline of her lips. Was Waverly’s eyes trained on her? Her breathing hardened and her heart pounded against the cage of her ribs, desperate to break free. The next thing the brunette knew, Nicole’s lips were on hers. Waverly’s hands fell to the redhead’s waist, and she pulled her impossibly closer. </p>
<p>Waverly gasped as Nicole’s hand slid from her face and brushed against her arm. The shorter woman’s grip on the redhead’s waist tightened, attempting to pull her even closer. All she wanted was to feel Nicole’s heavy breathing and heartbeat fluttering against her own chest, but Nicole stood strong. She wanted to pushing the redhead against a tree, the thought fleetingly crossing her mind-</p>
<p>Nicole tore herself away from the other woman, causing a slight whimper falling from to fall from Waverly’s mouth. The redhead’s eyes transformed into a coppery hue of green as her breathing spilled from her lips. “That’s why.”</p>
<p>The redhead’s eyes shifted to the other woman’s soft, pink lips one last time. Now she had a taste. Would she be able to stay away? “Come on, I’ve got a fire going for us about fifty feet away. I found random carrots and mushrooms growing in the wild. So, get ready to bon appétit!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> “Thank you for calling Hotness Inc. This is Champ speaking! How can I help you today?”</p>
<p>Wynonna spit out the large gulp of whiskey all over the windshield. “Hotness Inc? Sounds more like a company Nicole should work for, not you.”</p>
<p>“Are you saying she’s hot?”</p>
<p>“No,” Wynonna rolled her eyes. “How dumb are you? It’s her last name!” </p>
<p>“What do you want, Wynonna?” Champ huffed.</p>
<p>“Is that any way to speak to your future sister-in-law?” Wynonna asked, causing a gasp from both the passenger and the driver of the car. She reached over, smacking Jeremy in his arm. The younger man reached back, smacking Robin all the same. </p>
<p>Champ cursed a few choice words under his breath before returning to the phone call. “What can I do for you today, Wynonna?”</p>
<p>“Just kidding, asshole. I know you don’t care what I think. If you did, you would have asked what I thought about your proposal to my sister.”</p>
<p>“Can you get on with it?”</p>
<p>“Look Jeremy, Robin and I have to leave for a bit. Could you hang around the homestead, in case your future fiancée comes home.”</p>
<p>“Your sister’s missing and you’re leaving?” Champ yelled, causing Wynonna to pull the phone away from her ear. “You are such a fuckup, Wynonna!”</p>
<p>Wynonna guzzled liquid from the bottle of whiskey, forcing her argument down her throat. “That’s me, the Earp Fuckup.”</p>
<p>“Weren’t you telling me last night I couldn’t stay at the homestead?”</p>
<p>“Yup.” Wynonna answered, rolling her eyes in frustration. </p>
<p>“But now you are asking me to stay there?”</p>
<p>“Look, can you do it or not?” Wynonna asked as her eyes locked onto border patrol and the large signs flashing overhead preparing them for entry into the States.</p>
<p>“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Champ replied, no longer present in the conversation. </p>
<p>“Champ, you better call me if she comes home.”</p>
<p>“Fine, fine, I will,” He replied, as if he was a child being nagged by his parents.</p>
<p>“I’ll put in an excellent word for you,” She joked. “Bye Champ!”</p>
<p>Wynonna disconnected the call and looked over to the other two men, mouths gaped open. “What? She will never say yes.”</p>
<p>“He wants to propose?” Jeremy sputtered.</p>
<p>“I guess so.” Wynonna said. “So we have to get Waverly back soon so she can reject him.”</p>
<p>“You don’t think she will accept the proposal?” Robin asked.</p>
<p>“I know she will.” Wynonna said with confidence. “But we won’t know until she comes back.”</p>
<p>“Then let’s go!” Jeremy slammed on the gas pedal. The car sped for two hundred feet before he slammed on the brake, stopping for the line at border patrol.</p>
<p>“Nice one, Jeremy,” Wynonna said, sarcastically.</p>
<p>“Wait,” Goosebumps ran up and down Robin’s arms. “You’re sending Champ to spend time with an ex cowboy vampire in recovery.”</p>
<p>“You got that right.” Wynonna shuffled through the glove box to snatch their passports. </p>
<p>“Do you think he is safe?”</p>
<p>“If he isn’t, then we have our answer on the proposal, right Jeremy?”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Leave comments and kudos below to let me know your thoughts!</p>
<p>Like will Waverly say yes to Champ?! And is she actually pregnant (as many of you have speculated?!)</p>
<p>And find me on twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Sins in my Veins</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome Back! Thanks for tuning into yet another chapter of this crazy wild ride! I am soo happy you are still here!</p>
<p>Thanks for reading, commenting, and leaving kudos!!! This chapter is a weeee bit shorter than normal (you probably won't even notice, though now you will!)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 8</p>
<p>“I cannot wait to get out and stretch my legs!” Wynonna pounded on the dashboard with excitement. Six hours of being trapped in a car was six too many with Robin and Jeremy.</p>
<p>“Well, wait longer,” Robin clicked on his signal light and pulled over to the side of the road. “Who’s ready for an old-fashioned stakeout!”</p>
<p>“Stake out?” Wynonna shouted. “Robin, I have to take a piss!”</p>
<p>“What?” Robin unzipped his birdwatching binoculars from the bag and set them on the dash. “You women and your bladders.”</p>
<p>“Actually,” Jeremy stirred from the backseat, just waking from his nap. “I have to take a wizz, too.”</p>
<p>Robin dropped the binoculars on to the backseat. “Guess the spy gear will have to wait.”</p>
<p>“Oh, can we make a stop for donuts too! I’m starving!”</p>
<p>“How about we stop to get donuts and use the restroom!” Robin winked.</p>
<p>Wynonna ran her hand roughly through his fluffy, shaggy hair. “That’s why you’re the brains of this operation. Jeremy, you picked a good one.”</p>
<p>Jeremy squeezed Robin’s shoulder.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole spoke softly, her callused hand rubbing the younger girl’s back as she emptied the last night's meal onto the tree roots. “It seems like you’ve been vomiting a lot. Have you kept anything down?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” Waverly crossed her arms in front of her chest and fell back into Nicole’s arms. “It doesn’t happen all the time. Not each time after I eat.”</p>
<p>The redhead placed a small, wet kiss on the top of her head. “How are you feeling? Nauseous?”</p>
<p>“Only right before I throw up,” She admitted.</p>
<p>“I just hope it’s not something in the water.”</p>
<p>“I thought it might be the water we drank or the food we ate. But you aren’t sick. So it must just be dehydration?”</p>
<p>“It’s possible.” The redhead draped her arms around Waverly, as if she was worried she would disappear. “How are you feeling? Would you object to exploring a bit of the garden? I don’t think we can just be sitting ducks forever, just waiting for Wynonna. We have to make our own destiny.”</p>
<p>“I know we have to move on,” Waverly said. “Though I enjoy being with you, I want to be home. And the sooner we find this man Julian, ah my dad, spoke about, the sooner we can get home.”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Nicole sighed, “But if you aren’t feeling good, we can wait. Or I can hike for hours and turn back.”</p>
<p>Waverly tugged on the redhead’s powerful arm as she moved to stand. “What did I say about leaving me?”</p>
<p>Nicole hesitated for a few moments. “Uh, not to?”</p>
<p>“You got it.” Waverly wiggled from the other woman’s arms, then held out her hand to help her up. “I’m good, okay. We might just need extra breaks. And I want some water. Which reminds me, how are you doing?”</p>
<p>“Me?” Nicole’s head spun in confusion. Her hand dropped to her heated side where the pain still burned, as if her hand was no longer in her control. When she applied pressure, she could feel the pain, but she hid it from the other woman with ease. “I’m fine.”</p>
<p>“When we make a stop tonight to sleep, I want to check out your wound.” Using her underestimated strength, Waverly tugged the redhead to her feet. “Maybe use some antiseptic. I don’t want you to get infected.”</p>
<p>“Yes darling,” Nicole chuckled. She reached toward the ground, the shoulder pads of the backpack wrapping around her fingers as she flung it onto her back. “Ready whenever you are.”</p>
<p>“Aren’t I supposed to be the one carrying the backpack?”</p>
<p>“Nope, I’ve got this one. Ready?”</p>
<p>Waverly stood on the top of her toes, her lips curving slightly as she brushed them ever so against the other woman’s gently parted ones. “Now I’m ready.”</p>
<p>A goofy grin grew on Nicole’s face, and she couldn’t help the small but awkward chuckle that escaped from her mouth. “After you.”</p>
<p>Waverly took a few slow steps, getting her balance back and falling back into her normal stride. She watched as her feet destroyed the decaying fall leaves, pulverizing them back into the ground. </p>
<p>“Are you okay?” Nicole asked as she slowed her steps, falling into line with the shorter woman. “Do you need me to carry you?”</p>
<p>“No,” Waverly chuckled. “Though I doubt you could.”</p>
<p>“Is that a challenge, Ms. Earp?” Nicole said, her smile twinkling but her abdomen burning from the inside out. </p>
<p>“Maybe later,” The youngest Earp chuckled, her fingertips brushing against Nicole’s with each movement, as if they were dancing around each other, exactly like they were dancing around their feelings. </p>
<p>“What’s going on in that big magnificent brain of yours?” She asked. The ground was smooth underneath their shoes, and the lush vegetation filtered the light of the surrounding sun. “Have you theorized who Julian was talking about earlier?”</p>
<p>“I have no idea,” The brunette responded, clenching her eyelids closed as her brain rummaged through pages of researched stored there. If only she had her extensive library from the homestead. </p>
<p>“I’m thinking it has something to do with you,” Nicole pondered. With each haphazard step, the trees grew thicker and thicker, until only a few fragments of blue sky stay, as if it was a scattered, thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle.</p>
<p>“With me?” She asked, her voice increasing an octave. Her feet settled into the ground dry ground as she contemplated the sheriff’s words.</p>
<p>“Think about it,” Nicole suggested. The trees above them grew in so thick that the sun no longer reached the ground. Downed branches from the last night's storm cracked underneath her heavy yet well-worn shoes. “Widow Beth, Champ, Ward. They are all people from your past or your present.”</p>
<p>“Do you think my past is tormenting me because of my blood?” The air was rich with the smell of a passing rain shower, though Waverly couldn’t remember the last time it rained. “Could they be testing me to take Julian’s place?”</p>
<p>“Oh god, I hope not,” Nicole bit her lip as a swarm of anxiety bubbled inside her stomach. “I am a passenger on this bus. You are driving, I am just along for the ride.”</p>
<p>“Nicole, you are more than that~,” Under the heavy leaves, the colors of the garden transformed from paradise in the early summer to the vibrant blues. The only movement besides that of their own was the fluttering of a bird in the trees, startling the canopy of leaves high overhead. “I don’t know how you didn’t see it, or why I didn’t admit it. Well, actually, I know why I didn’t. It scared me. Scared of upsetting the Earth’s balance, of upsetting the citizens of Purgatory, because I was always the perfect one. I was a disappointment throughout my entire childhood. I don’t want to be a disappointment later in life either. I didn’t want you to think-”</p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole paused, her feet sinking into the damp dirt. “You can never disappoint me or your sister. You can never disappoint your loyal friends, and that’s all that matters, Waves. We love you for the way you are, and we don’t want you to be anyone else but yourself.”</p>
<p>“And that’s what I’m trying to say, Sheriff Haught,” Waverly took a step closer to the redhead with a smile tickling her features. “I don’t want to lie anymore. I want to be myself. I know being myself is acceptable. You taught me that, Nicole. You accept me, and I-”</p>
<p>After a subdued pop, behind Waverly, a squirrel sunk its claws into the nearby tree trunk and dashed up the trees into the rustling leaves, startled by the sudden noise contrasting against the tranquil scene.</p>
<p>“Julian?” Nicole asked, her eyes once again falling upon the figure of her once upon a time coworker. Waverly turned and took a step back, as if seeking comfort in Nicole’s warmth.</p>
<p>“I’m not supposed to be here,” He announced, his face pallid and his eyes darting around the forest, as if he was milliseconds away from being caught. “But I couldn’t stay away any longer.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Jeremy!” Wynonna yelled from the back of the seat. “I am so sick of sitting here! How long do we need to watch this poor family? Robin, have you learned anything? All I have learned is that they are in a heterosexual relationship.”</p>
<p>“Wynonna,” Jeremy rolled his eyes. “We’ve barely even been here for six hours. And we spent two of those hours at the Tim Horton’s drive-thru for you!”</p>
<p>“I’m with her,” Robin set the binoculars on the dashboard and folded his arms across his chest. “We have seen nothing we need.”</p>
<p>“And that’s something else I don’t understand,” Wynonna replied. “I don’t even understand what we are looking for.”</p>
<p>“Anything, Wynonna,” Jeremy glanced over as the man’s car pulled into the driveway. “Something we can take DNA from and test it against Waverly’s.”</p>
<p>“Is that why you took Waverly’s hairbrush?” She cracked. “I just thought you wanted a shrine.”</p>
<p>“He’s not that much of a creep!” Robin smirked.</p>
<p>“Yeah, like Robin said,” Jeremy agreed, until the puzzle pieces clicked together in his brain. “Hey wait, not that much of a-”</p>
<p>“And that’s something else I don’t understand. What could have DNA?” She took a long swig of her whiskey. “I mean besides a hairbrush, what else could we use? For all I know, I have seen something we could use and I haven’t even recognized it.”</p>
<p>“A toothbrush, a cup, or even-”</p>
<p>Wynonna leaned her head against the icy window, her breathing fogging up the glass. The heavy wooden door to the cape home swung open, and a short woman swept out with a white trash bag hanging by her side.</p>
<p>“Could you find DNA in the trash?” Wynonna asked.</p>
<p>Jeremy turned toward the eldest Earp. “I mean, I would hope we could find an item containing DNA-”</p>
<p>As he continued to lecture Wynonna about the fundamentals of DNA, her line of sight followed the man back inside the house. </p>
<p>“Here’s your chance, Jeremy!” Wynonna screeched. She reached forward, her hand clutching on the driver's side door, and swung it open. “Trash cans, 2 o’clock.”</p>
<p>Jeremy moved in the exact opposite direction of the garbage cans. Robin called out to the younger man, “The trash is at 10 o’clock Jeremy. Don’t listen to Wynonna!”</p>
<p>His feet pounded the cement with all the grace of a sack of wet concrete, and his head bobbed with each footfall. His eyes felt heavy in his eye sockets. Keeping the two trash cans in his line of sight, he kept his view on the finish line. With his intense speed, he found himself unable to stop knocking the trash cans into the plain white picket fence. </p>
<p>“Outstanding job, Jeremy,” Wynonna hoarse-whispered from the car. The man looked up and snickered as his fingers got tangled in the blue plastic tie. </p>
<p>“Jeremy!” Wynonna called, her pupils widening as daytime running lights flashed in front of them. </p>
<p>The scientist ignored the woman’s commands, his fingers shuffling through the family’s trash. </p>
<p>“Jeremy!” She called again.</p>
<p>“Jeremy!” Robin shouted this time. The Black Badge agent turned just as a red car pulled into the small driveway.</p>
<p>“Shit,” He cursed, ducking behind a bush beside the house.</p>
<p>“Well that went well,” Wynonna said, taking another large gulp of whiskey.  </p>
<p>Wynonna!” Jeremy shouted from behind the bush as she ran from their car to the incoming one. Robin rolled his eyes but Wynonna without hesitation. Talk about going all Wynonna!</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I think we have a Wynonna replacement in the garden! What did you think of this chapter!</p>
<p>Guess what? Season 4 is coming soon!! </p>
<p>Find me on twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Run Into Sin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heyo! I am pretty sick (slightly getting better at like a sloths pace!) but I wanted to pop in and update this as I had the chapter 85% ready before I got sick.</p>
<p>I didn't reply to the comments from the last chapter, but I promise I will! You all mean the world to me.</p>
<p>Anyone still interested in a garden fic after 402?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 9</p>
<p>“I’m not supposed to be here,” He announced, his face pallid and his eyes darting around the forest, as if he was milliseconds away from being caught. “But I couldn’t stay away any longer.”</p>
<p>“What?” Waverly asked as she slipped out of Nicole’s grasp. So close, yet so far away.</p>
<p>“Who would hurt you?” Nicole asked, following Waverly to her feet. </p>
<p>“The counsel,” His eyes flickered around the luscious trees, watching for any signs of life. </p>
<p>“Why would they hurt you?” The younger woman asked, her eyes watching his uncertain vision. “In the Garden of Eden, no less. Isn’t this supposed to be paradise?”</p>
<p>“That’s just it,” The ex-firefighter stated. He stepped away from the couple, following a small rustle of leaves in the corner of his view. “This isn’t the destination, it is the journey.”</p>
<p>“More riddles,” Nicole rolled her eyes and huffed dramatically.</p>
<p>“Wait, does that mean,” The magnets connected in Waverly’s head. “This isn’t the Garden.”</p>
<p>“I cannot tell you that,” He said as a large brown squirrel dashed up a tree, a mouthful of nuts packed into its mouth. “You must come to your own conclusions.”</p>
<p>“Okay so, this isn’t the garden,” Nicole agreed, watching the man’s strange behavior. “Then what is this?”</p>
<p>“The space in between,” He shrugged. The sheriff watched as his heart rate doubled, almost as if it was milliseconds away from cracking through his ribcage. “You are here to cleanse your soul. Only the innocent can enter the garden.”</p>
<p>“And what if you don’t succeed?” The youngest Earp asked.</p>
<p>“You will succeed, Waverly,” He said without hesitation. A flock of birds silhouetted against the orange kissed heavens, startling the once angel. “But the counsel wants you to fail. They want you to take my place on the throne.”</p>
<p>“She won’t,” Nicole reproached, falling in line with the shorter woman. “Is that how someone got stuck here?”</p>
<p>“I have said too much already,” He turned toward the opposite direction, the blood running from his face when it fell upon the mountainous landscape behind the two. “I’ve got to go.”</p>
<p>Without warning, the ground underneath the women shook and the uncertain air filed their ears with a noise which left them feeling as though they exploded. Falling to the ground, the sheriff’s hands claw through mud and rock, protecting her body from the brunt attack. Her injured wrist blew up like a balloon, bruises lining its circumference right in front of her eyes. </p>
<p>“Waverly!” She screamed. The quake trembled again, causing the brunette to pummel into the pillow of the redhead’s back. </p>
<p>“Waves,” she tried again as the woman rolled off of her from her. She blinked as her eyes watched the younger woman’s lips move, but no sound puddled into her ears. Nicole tried yet again, this time hoping for a response she could read from the other woman’s mouth. “Are you okay?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” She watched Waverly nod, before the brunette stood on her wobbly feet. The redhead watched the youngest Earp’s profile as she took in the scene behind them. Her head tilted upward, a red glow illuminating the snow white face. She stilled, like a statue erected in the middle of Purgatory, unmoved for decades.</p>
<p>Biting her lip, Nicole stood, her broken wrist draping around her burning, stabbing core. She turned toward the other woman, red outlining her own pupils. Black smoke billowed up toward the sky in growing high tide waves. The sky was just blue seconds ago, right? She hadn’t been hallucinating?</p>
<p>“We need to run!” Waverly said in between the constant church bells ringing within Nicole’s ears. Through the dark veil of smoke, a large mountain spits out lava in thick rivers, flowing through the luscious forest and destroying everything in its path. </p>
<p>“I don’t know if we can outrun it!” Nicole screamed, but to no avail. Magma continued to spew down the mountain, flowing faster and faster toward them. Waverly’s fingertips thread into Nicole’s, tugging and cracking the fractured wrist.</p>
<p>“Shit,” The redhead cursed, but her flight or fight instinct boiled inside her, her mind overcoming the sudden pain that will undoubtedly be there later. Later, that is when she could deal with the pain. Rotten smoke filled her lungs, and she blinked, desperate to wet her drying eyes. </p>
<p>Trees fell around them, loud enough that Waverly was certain the sky was falling, just as chicken little predicted. Rocks pelted from the sky, as if the clouds were raining igneous ash instead of water droplets. </p>
<p>In the opposite direction of the smouldering liquid, a dark figure danced between the trees. The flames from the lava flickered across its face. With each pound of the shadow's feet against the ash-laden ground, the figure’s shape auto-focused in their view. </p>
<p>At the bow of Waverly’s vision, leather appeared opposite her feet. Her eyes followed the cowhide, her face turning ghost white as her eyes locked with a face that looked all too like her own. Her feet skidded to a halt seconds before she pounded into the form. That might have been a better outcome.</p>
<p>“You don’t look too happy to see me, Wave?” Her voice was like an earthquake, shaking her bones and rattling her to the core. “Have you not missed me?”</p>
<p>Waverly glanced back at the erupting volcano, choking as the ember dotted her face and smoke filled her lungs. They could not go back, they needed to go forward. It was the only way.</p>
<p>“You see her too, right?” Waverly whispered to the redhead, the ringing in her ears now dwindling to a dinner bell. “I’m not hallucinating?”</p>
<p>“No,” Nicole choked, her fingertips slipping from Waverly’s as she wrapped her arm around her face, desperate to stop the smoke inhalation. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Wynonna!” Jeremy shouted from the behind the bush. Stepping out of his hiding spot, he joined Wynonna and his not maybe but definitely boyfriend, trying to look as casual as possible. Reaching forward, Robin brushed the pine needles out of his curly hair. As the man pulled into the driveway, he smiled and waved, looking like a creepy adult child on Halloween.</p>
<p>“Hi there, sir,” Wynonna called in her best professional and polite voice as the man slipped through the small slit between the car and the door.</p>
<p>“Can I help you?” He turned and looked at the motley crew in front of him and turned back to the car, as if surveying his escape route. </p>
<p>“We are with the Black-” Jeremy started but Wynonna pounded her foot on his toe, causing the young man to bite his lip in pain.</p>
<p>“We are with the Purgatory Fire Department.” She grabbed her phone from her leather jacket pocket. With a few taps, she loaded a picture of the firefighter and handed the phone to the stranger. “Do you know this man?”</p>
<p>“You have a picture from the calendar?” Jeremy whispered. “It hasn’t even been released yet!”</p>
<p>Robin chuckled. “That’s what happens when you are sleeping with the firefighters.”</p>
<p>“One firefighter,” Wynonna spit. “I slept with one firefighter, on several occasions.”</p>
<p>“For now,” Jeremy chuckled.</p>
<p>A confused look flashed over the stranger’s face as the picture of a shirtless Charlie stared back at him.. He passed the phone back to the leather-clad woman, his face pale as if he had just seen a ghost. “That looks like a someone I have seen in family pictures. I think he was one of my uncles down the line. But that cannot be him. He would be over a hundred! Maybe he had a son? I don’t know. He couldn’t look like that.”</p>
<p>“Lots of plastic surgery, I assume,” Wynonna slid the phone back into her pocket. “His name was Julian. Does that sound familiar?”</p>
<p>“Julian? Yeah, I think so.”</p>
<p>“Do you mind if we step inside,” Robin shivered, pretending to be cold from the nippy winter air.</p>
<p>“Yeah, absolutely.” His eyes analyzed the room as he opened the door. “Let me check to see if my wife is awake. We have a four-month-old, so she might take a nap.”</p>
<p>“Oh wow, congratulations!” Jeremy exclaimed.</p>
<p>Wordlessly, the homeowner ushered them into the quaint cottage home. Warmth wrapped around the frozen figures, like a delicate blanket comforting them after a blustery storm. </p>
<p>“Let me just go run upstairs. I will be right back.” The bearded man whispered. Without awaiting a response, he dashed up the stairs, taking two steps at a time. Wynonna drifted over toward the family photos on the wall, a smile gracing her features as she stared at the infant baby boy, adorned in a knitted sweater.</p>
<p>“If Julian was his great uncle,” Jeremy whispered, “That would mean these people are Waverly’s cousins?”</p>
<p>“I would guess.” Her eyes moved onto the woman wrapped up in a white dress. The bride’s arms wrapped around a younger version of the man who had allowed Wynonna into the home. Would Waverly look that happy on her wedding day?</p>
<p>“Hi there,” A brunette haired woman stepped down the stairs, a tiredness to her step. “Steve tells me you knew his Uncle Julian.”</p>
<p>“Yes,” Wynonna said. “Can we take a seat?”</p>
<p>“Uh, would I be able to use your restroom?” Jeremy asked, his eyes on the prize. They needed DNA! He could not wait to use his mobile lab testing kit!</p>
<p>“Second door on the right,” The woman said, folding her feet underneath her as she made herself comfortable on the couch. </p>
<p>“Yeah sorry,” Steve replied. “Please excuse our manners. Take a seat.”</p>
<p>“Thanks,” Robin plopped onto the couch, his leg touching Jeremy’s. </p>
<p>“I know this might be difficult to hear,” Wynonna drummed her nervous fingers on her jeans. “But your great uncle, Julian, had been working at the Purgatory Fire Department for the past year.”</p>
<p>“That is not possible?” The woman asked. “He is ancient.”</p>
<p>“Must be something in the water in the states,” Wynonna replied, her dry humor cutting through the tension. </p>
<p>“We aren’t sure, ma’am,” Jeremy answered, shuffling back into the room in haste. “But we know that your last names match.”</p>
<p>“And he listed you as his last known kin,” The eldest Earp lied. Daggers shot from Jeremy’s eyes. </p>
<p>“But we are here to inform you,” Robin took a deep breath. “That Julian passed away.”</p>
<p>“In the line of duty,” Wynonna finished as wild wails ejected from the baby monitor on the coffee table, causing the group of agents to jump, startled.</p>
<p>“I’m so sorry,” The woman apologized. Without another word, she flew up the stairs.</p>
<p>“Sorry, this is a lot,” Steve shuffled to the edge of the couch cushion. “What… How did it happen?”</p>
<p>“There was a terrible fire,” She began.</p>
<p>“In a barn,” Jeremy filled in.</p>
<p>Wynonna glared at the younger man, hoping he would remain quiet. She knew he wouldn’t. He never did. “Yes, in a barn. There was a child in the barn, and they tasked Julian with getting her out. But the roof collapsed.”</p>
<p>The man clasped his hands together in shock. He clenched his body over his knees. “And the girl?”</p>
<p>“She made it out okay,” Robin responded. Creaks resounded from a top of the stairs as the woman pounded down the stairs, a babbling baby attached to her hip.</p>
<p>“Is there anything we need to do? We can do?” She asked, returning to her seat beside her husband. The baby outstretched his chubby arms and squirmed as he tried to maneuver his way into his father’s arms. She passed the boy to Steve seconds before a wail escaped his tired lips.</p>
<p>“No,” Robin couldn’t help but smile at the chubby baby. “We thought we should let you know.”</p>
<p>“Will there be a service?” She asked.</p>
<p>Wynonna’s eyes danced from Robin to Jeremy, unsure of her own response. </p>
<p>“Yes, I’m sure there will be,” Jeremy responded. “We don’t have any solid details yet though. We can let you know as soon as we find out ourselves.”</p>
<p>“Perfect,” The man laid back on the couch, the baby blowing bubbles against his chest. “We would really appreciate that.”</p>
<p>“Are you three firefighters as well?” The woman rubbed the baby’s back. </p>
<p>“No, no, definitely not,” Jeremy responded. </p>
<p>“No,” Wynonna took a deep breath, her mind rattling with information and outcomes for each decision she could make. Would the truth make any difference? “Julian is actually my sister’s father. Well, officially my half-sister, but I don’t refer to her as that.”</p>
<p>“Really?” She replied as the baby squirmed in the father’s arms. “Was he like 80 years old when he had her?”</p>
<p>“Well, you know what they say,” Wynonna chuckled. “Swimmers never die.”</p>
<p>“I guess Julian’s charm didn’t either.” Steve smiled, lighting up the mood. The baby stretched his limbs toward Wynonna and his face scrunched together. It looked like in a mere second, he would cry like someone stole his favorite bottle.</p>
<p>“I think he likes you,” Steve smiled. “Would you like to hold him?”</p>
<p>Wynonna looked from mother to father, as if requesting permission. She held her own hands out to the baby, but her own hesitancy flashed through her own eyes. Steve passed the child over to the eldest Earp. The baby settled within seconds, curling into Wynonna’s side. She held her hand out and curled his chubby fingers around her own. Jeremy scooted closer to her and tickled the baby boys sock covered feet.</p>
<p>“He is adorable,” Jeremy said as tears welled up in her eyes. </p>
<p>Wynonna took a deep breath and held the baby out for the parents. Without another second, she wiped her own tears, pretending as though it didn’t happen. </p>
<p>“We’ve got to go,” Wynonna said. Both cohorts hopped to their feet and followed her to the door.</p>
<p>“What about the funeral?”</p>
<p>“We will be in touch,” Robin said. He turned and shook both strangers’ hands as Jeremy followed Wynonna through the door. “It was great to meet you.”</p>
<p>“I didn’t get to catch your name?”</p>
<p>“Robin, Robin Jett,” He said. “We will see you soon.”</p>
<p>Robin sprinted to the car, flinging himself into the driver’s side.</p>
<p>“What was that?” Robin asked.</p>
<p>Wynonna popped open the cap to her last bottle of whiskey and downed a fifth. “I can’t do it.”</p>
<p>“Can’t do what?” Jeremy asked. “Take their DNA? Look, I know it’s an invasion of privacy-”</p>
<p>“I can’t take those parents away from their child.” She tugged a tissue out from between the drivers and passenger’s seat. She dabbed her eyes and wiped her nose. “They would feel just as bad about leaving their son as I do about leaving Alice. I couldn’t do that to them. I couldn’t live with that guilt.”</p>
<p>“You didn’t have a choice, Wynonna,” Jeremy reminded. “You had to keep Alice safe. It was the only way.”</p>
<p>“Was it though? Was it really?”</p>
<p>“Yes, Wynonna, it was,” Robin’s voice was strong and confident. “She’s with your Aunt Gus who you know is taking great care of her. She is safe and happy. We will be home soon.”</p>
<p>“And Waverly would agree with your decision, Wynonna.” Jeremy placed his hand on her shoulder. “She wouldn’t want you to break up a family.”</p>
<p>“I know,” Wynonna downed another fifth of the alcohol, coughing from the whiskey’s burn. “So now, what do we do?”</p>
<p>“And,” Jeremy reached into his pocket and pulled out two used toothbrushes from his pocket. “What do I do with these?”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>As always, thanks for reading and leaving comments and kudos! Find me on twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Feel the Wrath of Aftermath</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>*sneaks in hoping no one has noticed that I missed updating last week*</p>
<p>Blame my sister and all her wedding duties she is making me perform.</p>
<p>But guess what? I'm back and I'm not sick and I'm ready to go!</p>
<p>Unfortunately, no Wynonna this chapter... Sorry to disappoint!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 10</p>
<p>“Nope, evil Willa is there.” Nicole agreed, turning her head to analyze the flowing lava. They didn’t have a choice, they had to get past her. </p>
<p>“What did I do to deserve this?” The brunette asked rhetorically as she wrapped her extended arm across her face, desperate to mask the powerful stench of sulfur.</p>
<p>“Stop talking like I’m not here!” The shrill tone erupted. Nicole swore the ground shuddered yet again. </p>
<p>“Because you’re not,” Nicole grabbed Waverly’s firm hand to shelter her from her eldest sister, but to no avail.  Waverly needed to do this herself. </p>
<p>Willa ignored each word falling from Nicole’s mouth. Instead, her ash colored pupils stayed locked on her sister, as if she could trap her using her own bubble of anger.  A fake smile rumbled across her stone facade, causing goosebumps to line the shorter woman’s slender arms. She remembered this all too well. “I’m so happy you are here.”</p>
<p>“Why, so you can punish me again?” Waverly asked, choking on rotten egg smoke. “Push me into a river this time?”</p>
<p>Willa’s jarring laugh continued until her lungs filled with sulfuric air. “Oh no, dear sister, I will kill you.”</p>
<p>Nicole felt the woman’s eyes, like rough, broken glass stabbing into her soul. The vivid orange liquid rushed closer to the two; time was not on their side. Stepping in front of Waverly, the tall redhead sheltered her; to hell with letting her be an independent woman. </p>
<p>“Who the hell do you think you are, bitch?” The offended Earp raised her ragged palm to slap Nicole, but before she uttered her next breath, the redhead grabbed her arm, twisted it to her back, and wrapped her in a headlock, just as she would with a drunk Champ Hardy on a weekly basis.</p>
<p>“I told you not to use that stuff. It’s poisonous.” Nicole imitated the Earp heir’s voice. She shoved Willa’s head toward the heated ground in frustration. “Remember me now, bitch?”</p>
<p>“Oh yeah, the obsessed redhead.” She snickered. “How does it feel to know my sister will never return her unrequited love?”</p>
<p>Insecurities rushed through Nicole’s veins. Using the distraction to her advantage, Willa gained control. She twisted the sheriff in a second and slammed her face into the solid dirt. Waverly rushed toward her sister like a bull rushing a matador, shoving her into the molten magma. </p>
<p>“You aren’t the only one who’s been working out.” Waverly snickered. The redhead observed from her elbows, a flame burning within her. She shook her head, desperate not to pay attention to the muscles in Waverly’s thighs or the sweat droplets shimming down her neck and into her shirt. </p>
<p>“We need to go!” She shouted, watching as the goo swallowed the ground inch by inch. She held her sweaty palm toward the redhead. With no hesitation, Nicole’s fingertips intertwined with Waverly’s, and she graciously accepted the younger woman’s help. </p>
<p>As she rose to her full height, Nicole took in their position, feeling the beat of the other woman’s heart. Condensation snaked down Waverly’s nose and puddled onto Nicole. The sheriff’s arm wrapped around Waverly’s waist as she pretended to hold her close for balance. Her tongue traced her lips as the youngest Earp’s eyes dilated in arousal.</p>
<p>“You’re really, really sexy,” Nicole stuttered.</p>
<p>“We really, really should go,” Waverly suggested, but instead of taking her own advice, her fingertips threaded through red locks and she guided Nicole’s lips toward hers.</p>
<p>“Hey assholes,”  The rough voice penetrated their eardrums and tore through their bodies, “Did you forget you are seconds away from dying a smouldering death?”</p>
<p>“I feel like she will be worse than Wynonna,” Nicole said, her arms still  wrapped tightly around Waverly. The youngest woman rubbed her eyes, trying to clear her vision. </p>
<p>“How is she still here?” Waverly muttered. “But she’s right, we really need to run.” </p>
<p>Nicole nodded in acknowledgment and followed behind Waverly. The warm humidity of the forest and the smoke from the lava made the sheriff’s skin sticky and suffocating. Waverly’s pace doubled as they passed Willa without a second glance. Sweat rolled across the redhead’s forehead in thick, salty beads. With each step, a shadow came in to view, one that Waverly was sure would haunt both of their dreams.   <br/>“How?” Waverly muttered, skidding to a stop just inches before crashing into her sister. They were a short distance away from the lava; they had gained a few moments of safety.</p>
<p>“Don’t look so surprised to see me again, Waverly,” Willa chuckled. “Wynonna always bragged that you were the smart one. Wow, she was wrong.”</p>
<p>Waverly reached forward, grabbing a fistful of Willa’s faux leather jacket. She tried to wrestle the older woman to the ground, but to no avail. <br/>“You are so weak,” Willa continued, choking from her lack of wholesome oxygen. “You’ve always been so weak. I don’t know why dad ever kept you.”</p>
<p>“Weak?” Waverly squatted beside her sister, her eyes piercing into Willa.  Using her might, she jabbed Willa in the ribs with such force that her older sister fell to the ground. Heat suffocated Waverly, but she ignored the uncomfortableness and shoved her foot into the other woman’s chest, depleting the air from her lungs. “Who’s the one in control now?”</p>
<p>“Control?” Willa’s maniacal shriek sent chills to her core. “You think you’re in control? Look around, Waverly.”</p>
<p>The youngest Earp craned her neck, her vision blurring as her neck cracked from left to right. Instead of one evil, maniacal Willa staring back at her, seven sets of penetrating eyes sliced through her soul.</p>
<p>“You think we can run for it?” Waverly asked, a constant stream of smoke blurring her vision.</p>
<p>“This is not the Clone Club I wanted to join,” Nicole whispered as the women stalked toward them in a straight line. She glanced behind, taking in the roaring lava’s position.  There was nowhere to run. </p>
<p>“You attack Willa on the left and I will attack the Willa’s on the right?” Waverly whispered over her shoulder. Her fingertips dangled against Nicole’s and a grin lit her face.<br/>“You got it.” </p>
<p>Fists clenched, Nicole stalked forward as she readied herself for a fight. She punched the first Willa in the face, causing her to stumble toward the fiery liquid. Dodging a second fist, she spun on her heels, twisting to elbow one clone in the throat. She too fell to the ground, evaporating as soon as her soft skin touched the lava.  Her stomach burned, but she refused to falter.  The third Willa glanced toward her fallen comrade, and the redhead used the opportunity to drill her in the gut. She too fell to the ground, following in the other clone’s footsteps. A wetness dribbled down the redhead's stomach, but she fought through the pain. She turned toward Waverly, only to find that she had defeated all but two of the fake Willa’s.  </p>
<p>“Good job, Waves.” The redhead said. </p>
<p>The youngest Earp’s cheeks blossomed from the compliment. Craning her neck, she screamed just in time. “Watch it!”</p>
<p>Nicole eluded the attack as Waverly smashed the other woman in the nose. She too lost her footing, falling into the rising lava. The brunette shook her hand as she tried to rid herself of the pain. “Holy shit that hurt.”</p>
<p>“Fuck,” Nicole grabbed the other woman’s hand and held it delicately in her hand, like a precious flower. She could see the knuckles starting to balloon and a bruise beginning to bloom. Her lips tingled with a desire to kiss the pain away.</p>
<p>“Are they coming back for us?” She asked.</p>
<p>Nicole looked over the other woman’s shoulder, her eyes analyzing the scene before her within a heartbeat. “Nope, looks like there’s only one left. The original Willa. At least I think it is.”</p>
<p>“I know how to defeat her,” Waverly whispered. Her eyes latched onto the redhead before turning toward her eldest sister.</p>
<p>“I don’t hate you, Willa,” Waverly exhaled a deep breath through her nostrils as she tried to calm her own breathing. Gently, Nicole let go of the tender and most likely broken hand. Her eyes widened as another Willa regenerated from the flames.</p>
<p>“What?” The eldest Earp called, the fire inside her burning brighter and brighter. </p>
<p>The youngest Earp stepped closer to her sister, ignoring the clones as they tried to grasp onto her clothes. “I don’t hate you at, Willa. It’s the exact opposite. I feel bad for you, Willa.”</p>
<p>“Bullshit.”</p>
<p>“It’s not,” Waverly tried to reach out toward her sister, but the eldest Earp smacked her hand away. “You were the object of Dad’s affection. You were his pride and joy, and you confused that for love. Like any child would. I confused Dad’s abusive violence as love. But that’s not love, Willa. The only thing Dad loved was his whiskey bottle.”</p>
<p>“Dad loved me,” Willa argued.</p>
<p>“If Dad could have been capable of love, maybe, but he brainwashed you. And instead of treating you like a child, he trained you for the slaughter.”</p>
<p>“Dad wanted me to defeat the revenants.”</p>
<p>“And maybe you would have,” Waverly shrugged her shoulders and took another step closer. “But we never got that chance, because Dad had you kidnapped.”</p>
<p>“Because Wynonna was stupid and shot him!”</p>
<p>“Peacemaker shot him,” Waverly argued. Nicole’s hand slipped onto Waverly’s back as if she were the anchor holding her in place.  “Wynonna didn’t kill him. Dad was a reckless drunk, Willa. He is not who you held on a pedestal.  If he wanted his children safe, if he cared about us, he would have made sure that we weren’t home when the revenants came to take her. We could have stayed at Gus’s. We could have stayed anywhere else besides the homestead.”</p>
<p>“Dad loved me.” She responded.</p>
<p>“I don’t disagree. Dad loved you the best way he could.” She reached forward, placing her hand on Willa’s cheek without fail. “But he didn’t love you the way you should have been. The way you deserved. You deserved more, Willa. I wish you could still be with us, Willa. So, we could show you what it really means to be part of the Earp Family. It’s so much more than just firing a gun.”</p>
<p>“No, you don’t,” Willa said as the younger woman brushed away a second tear from her eldest sister’s cheek. </p>
<p>“Yeah I do,” Waverly’s hands descended to her sister’s shoulders, and without warning she dragged the woman into a warm, Earp hug. “You deserved more, Willa. You deserved better. And I wish you had a second chance.”</p>
<p>Willa evaporated into thin air right alongside the heated molten lava. A heavy breath fell from Waverly’s mouth as her heartbeat returned to its normal pace.</p>
<p>“How did you know that would work?” Nicole asked, nervous sweat dripping down her face. Her arms encircled around Waverly like a security blanket, holding her tight and keeping her protected from the outside world.</p>
<p>“I didn’t,” She admitted, her heart beat fighting its way back to its normal pace. “She was angry and I know the only way to destroy anger is with love.”</p>
<p>The redhead slipped a light kiss on the cap of her head. “You did amazing. I wouldn’t have thought of that. I would have been fighting off regenerating Willa’s for the rest of the night.”</p>
<p>“Nicole?” Waverly called, her voice shaky and scared. The redhead’s face paled; what if some blood from her stomach brushed against Waverly’s soft skin?</p>
<p>Against her own wishes, Nicole created distance in between them and looked into the other woman’s eyes. “What’s wrong?”</p>
<p>“What if we never leave?” Tears slithered from her pupils, but Nicole hadn’t a clue how to make them stop. “What if we can’t get out? What if we are stuck in this never-ending loop forever?”</p>
<p>“We will get out of here, Waverly,” The redhead spoke with confidence. “We will look around the entire garden until we find whoever Julian was talking about and convince him to take the throne, or we will beat whatever game the counsel has set up for us.”</p>
<p>“But what if we can’t? What if we aren’t strong enough?” She asked. “What if we can’t find the person Julian mentioned? Or what if they don’t want to help us? What if they can? Julian left 20 something years ago and they haven’t been able to escape this entire time!”</p>
<p>Nicole’s arm slithered around the other woman’s waist, holding her close. “I can convince them if I need to. Plus, Waves, we make our own destiny.” </p>
<p>“But…”</p>
<p>Nicole took in the shaking and lack of strength in the younger woman’s legs. Gently, she lowered the two to a sitting position on the ground, keeping Waverly tight against her chest.</p>
<p>“No. We will get out of wherever we are, okay?” She repeated. “We are doing the best we can here, and now Julian told us this entire land is like a giant puzzle. We are getting somewhere, Waves, I know it. And you know damn well that Wynonna isn’t sitting there waiting for you to walk through the gate. She would do anything to ensure your safety.”</p>
<p>“But I don’t want her to-”</p>
<p>“Waves, we love you, and we would do anything for you.”</p>
<p>“Wynonna loves me,” Waverly agreed. “But you, Nicole, the way you look at me, and I mean really look at me. The way you feel for me, it’s almost too much.”</p>
<p>“Waves, I’m sorry-” Nicole shifted, insecurities plaguing her mind. She tried to stand, but Waverly used her strength to hold her to the ground. She shoved her soft index finger to the redhead’s mouth.  </p>
<p>“Would you sit still and be quiet for just one second?” She joked.</p>
<p>“If I must, it’s hard, you know,” Nicole smiled, but her eyes danced in every direction. She shivered as insecurities trailed her back like rain in an early winter storm. </p>
<p>Waverly slipped her fingertips into Nicole’s, trying to quell the redhead’s anxiety. “All it takes is one look from you and I know everything will be okay. No matter what happens, I know we will get through it together.  I never thought someone could care about me the way you do. But here you are. You make me feel warm and special and for the first time in my life, truly loved and happy. With you by my side, I feel like I can do anything.”</p>
<p>“You can, Waves, you don’t need me here with you.” She spewed, causing the other woman to glare at her.  Her sweaty fingers wrestled against Waverly in worry. The youngest Earp glared at Waverly for the interruption. “Sorry, sorry.”</p>
<p>“Anyway,” Worry flared on Waverly’s skin like an allergic reaction. “I don’t know how to do this.”</p>
<p>“I think you’re doing great.” Nicole spoke. Her eyes finally caught Waverly’s tears welled inside her pupils, which were dilated with a mixture of emotion and worry, but most of all, love. </p>
<p>“Nicole, just shut up and kiss me.”</p>
<p>“Yes ma’am,” She responded with a smirk. Nicole’s fingertip found Waverly’s chin, lifting her gaze so their eyes could meet. Waverly recognized the emotions shaded behind the Nicole’s soft pupils; love, lust, and longing. She was certain the same emotions tinted her own. Nicole touched her forehead to Waverly’s, and a warmth spread all over the brunette. The redhead leaned her head closer, their lips brushing together gently, but with certainty. The world spinning around them slowed for a split second. Waverly’s heart fluttered as she slowly kissed back, certain she would cherish this moment with Nicole forever.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>We finally got somewhere with Wayhaught! Finally!! </p>
<p>Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment or kudo below!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Wash Away My Sins</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I am here, I am on time, and raring to go! Hopefully you are too! I think we got a good one here today =)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 11</p>
<p>Frosty air hit Nicole’s warm figure as Waverly dashed out from underneath the emergency blanket. Had it been a day? Or a week? The pain in her stomach burned, making her think it was the latter. The redhead tried to grab her hand and tug her back, but she failed. </p>
<p>“No, don’t go,” Nicole moaned. She closed her eyes for a split second before the sound of Waverly retching her last meal on the ground filled her ears. </p>
<p>“Waves,” The redhead threw the blanket off, sprinting to Waverly’s side. She placed a gentle hand on the younger woman’s back, a gentle reminder that she was there for her, supporting her and loving her.</p>
<p>“I’m okay, I’m okay,” With her strength depleted, Waverly collapsed into the taller woman’s arms. </p>
<p>“You aren’t okay, Waves,” She sat cross-legged on the ground beside her, guiding the brunette into her lap. “Can you remember a day you haven’t thrown up since we got here?”</p>
<p>“I can’t remember our last day in Purgatory,” Waverly gritted her teeth. Rising into the air, she slipped away from Nicole’s clutches.</p>
<p>“We have to take care of you, Waves,” She reiterated. Pressing her palm against the dirt ground, she shoved herself up using her shaking forearms. Desperately, Waverly folded up the emergency blanket and shoved it into the stuffed backpack.</p>
<p>“No, we have to go,” She tugged on the backpack’s zipper in such haste that it split. “We need to get home!”</p>
<p>“I know we do, but getting out of here won’t matter if you are sick, Waverly.”</p>
<p>She shrugged the shoulder strap onto her back. “Are you coming or?”</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Nicole’s hands settled onto the other woman’s shoulders. She held her in place, stopping the world from spinning around the brunette. “We will get out of here. But first, take a deep breath. What’s going on in that magnificent brain of yours?”</p>
<p>Water welled in Waverly’s eyes, but she forced herself to keep her tears at bay. The redhead tucked the brunette into her side. She wrapped her arms around the younger woman.</p>
<p>“I’m just so scared,” She snuggled her head into Nicole’s neck, the powerful scent of vanilla tickling her senses. It ground her, Nicole grounded her. “Most of the time, I pretend to be strong and confident, but Nic, I can’t pretend any longer. What if we never find a way home? What if I never get to see Wynonna again? What if I’m not there to bring Alice to her first day of kindergarten? What if I never see Doc’s stupid moustache again? What if I’m never able to make fun of the fact that Jeremy’s only had sex one and a half times?”</p>
<p>“You’ve never done that,” Nicole smirked.</p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly smacked the redhead’s arm. “I am being serious!”</p>
<p>“I promise you, baby,” The taller woman pressed her dry, scratchy lips against Waverly’s forehead. “You will not be stuck here, Waverly. You will get to do everything you dream of. But I’m sure Jeremy hopes your dreams don’t include harassing him about his sexual experience.”</p>
<p>Waverly sighed, feeling like a snowman in the warm spring sun as she melted in Nicole’s arms. “What did you just call me?”</p>
<p>Nicole jerked away as her nerves churned like butter in her stomach. “Baby? Sorry, was that okay? It just-”</p>
<p>“I love it!” She planted a light kiss on her nose. “Come on slow poke, we have hiking to do! And a strange person to find!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Please leave the bottle,” Wynonna commanded to one of Doc’s lackeys. She hired the bartender to oversee Shorty’s while Doc could not face the public, which entitled her to free alcohol for the entirety of his employment. Never in a million years did she imagine herself managing a bar while searching for her long-lost sister. Without a word, the bartender slid the bottle of whiskey on the counter and disappeared.  From her stool, Wynonna reached forward, snatching another shot glass from behind the bar. She filled the two glasses to the brim, droplets of liquor dripping down the side and pooling on top of the sticky counter. She downed each shot within seconds, her eyes watering and her throat burning from the sting. As she watched the customers become rowdy with the bartender, her mind drifted to a time when Waverly was the one behind the bar, slinging drinks and taking keys. But the bartender was a stranger, and her sister was as gone as the wind.<br/>
</p>
<p>Wynonna slammed two more shots, the burn of the alcohol hiding the actual reason tears were forming in her eyes.  Setting her head in her hands, she took a deep breath after deep breath, desperate to keep her emotions in check.</p>
<p>“Is it okay if I join you?” The young man asked, his voice wavering in anxiety and yet laced with authority. If it was anyone other than Jeremy, the intruder would have been on the receiving end of a bloody nose. Instead, she shuffled onto another bar stool, giving the man to sit beside her.<br/>
</p>
<p>“No matter what I say, you still will,” Wynonna replied. Without asking for consent, she poured whiskey into the second shot glass and handed it to him. “Your night been any better than mine?”</p>
<p>“It has been shitty,” He downed the alcohol, squinting his eyes and curling his toes. “I know you don’t think so, Wynonna, but I want them back too. As much as I live and breathe. Waverly took me in and made me feel normal, like I was a part of something. She is my best friend.”</p>
<p>A tear swam across Jeremy’s cheek and waded on the skin of his arm. She poured yet another shot and passed it to him. “You need this too.”</p>
<p>“I don’t drink,” He argued, but swallowed the amber liquid it in one gulp. </p>
<p>“Well, tonight you are. You need it.”</p>
<p>Jeremy held the glass for another shot. “Do you think she will ask me to be her best man?”</p>
<p>“She better chose you!” Wynonna said.</p>
<p>“How’s Champ?” He gripped tightly on the bar as his body swayed and the world around him starting to spin as though he was on a slow-moving merry-go-round. </p>
<p>“No idea,” She shrugged her shoulders. “I haven’t been home.”</p>
<p>“You haven’t been home yet?” Jeremy asked. “I thought you would want to take a shower after being stuck with Robin and I for 48 hours straight.”</p>
<p>“I needed the decontamination showers for that,” Wynonna attempted to wink, but failed due to her lack of coordination.</p>
<p>“You need to sleep, Wynonna,” Jeremy lectured. “Waverly would want you to take care of yourself.”</p>
<p>“Would she? What would Waverly want?” Wynonna banged on the bar, causing the empty glasses littering the counter to tremble. “We don’t know what Waverly would want, because she isn’t here!”</p>
<p>“We will get her back! You can’t give up hope.”</p>
<p>“Hope? I don’t have hope.” She poured another shot and downed it, her cheeks reddening from the anger and the heat. “I flushed hope down the drain when I decided I couldn’t split up that family in the States. When I decided Waverly wouldn’t want that. Now I’m losing Waverly, just like I lost Willa.”</p>
<p>“That was the right decision, Wynonna. There are other ways.”</p>
<p>“Enlighten me, Jeremy, because I’m drowning.”</p>
<p>“You aren’t alone, Wynonna. Robin and I are here. We want her back, too. We will work all hours until we find get her home.” </p>
<p>“I made the wrong decision,” Her voice cracked in frustration. “I should have convinced them to come to Purgatory. That family was the only connection we had to angel blood. Waverly could have been home! But now-”</p>
<p>“You couldn’t split up that family, Wynonna.” He repeated. “You didn’t want that baby to grow up without a family like you and Waverly did.”</p>
<p>“The way Alice is.” </p>
<p>“There’s still time, Wynonna. We could drive to Gus’s house to get her tonight.”</p>
<p>“I want to,” She said. “I want to so bad. But I can’t be the mother she deserves right now. She deserves someone who can devote 100% of themselves to her wants and needs. And I can’t give her that until Waverly comes home.”</p>
<p>“Which will be soon, I promise.” </p>
<p>“I hope so, because I don’t know how much longer I can take this. I miss my sister. I miss my best friend.”</p>
<p>“Me too,” Jeremy said. He grabbed the bottle and poured himself another shot.</p>
<p>“Where’s Robin? Is he sober?”</p>
<p>“Back at the office researching the garden, but I wanted to check on you.”</p>
<p>“Can he drive us home tonight?”</p>
<p>“Absolutely.”</p>
<p>“Come on,” Wynonna snatched the bottle and her shot glass in one fellow swoop. “Let’s play pool.”</p>
<p>“Pool?” Jeremy shrieked. “You got me so drunk that I can barely stand, and now you want me to play pool?”</p>
<p>“Looks like this will be an easy win,” Wynonna said, chalking up her pool stick. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The late afternoon sun dipped under the horizon as the two pedalled across another hill. Day transformed into night within a blind of an eye. Sweat beaded on Nicole’s forehead, though goosebumps lined her forearms and frost littered the ground. Beside her, Waverly had her arms wrapped around her chest, pressing the hoodie to her chest and warming her soul. The brunette’s stomach gurgled inside of her, rumbling like the start of a thunder-snow storm.</p>
<p>“How did it get so cold?” Waverly’s teeth chattered and her body shivered.</p>
<p>“The sun went down,” The redhead announced. With each passing minute, it became harder to see what was in front of them. How long had they been walking?</p>
<p>“Shouldn’t paradise be warm?” Waverly blew hot air into her freezing hands. She rubbed them together to create a warming friction, then slipped them back into her pockets. </p>
<p>“I hoped, but other people must like cold weather.” She said. “I think it is time to set up camp. We could make a fire for warmth.”</p>
<p>“I know something else we can do to get warm,” The shorter woman winked. </p>
<p>“Waverly Earp,” The redhead made a fake gasp. She peered above them, analyzing the long, drooping leaves sheltering them from the elements. “I think right here looks good. Make yourself comfortable and I will grab kindle. Take the blanket out and get warm.”</p>
<p>“You sure you don’t want any help?” Waverly called over to the other woman’s fleeting form. </p>
<p>“I got it!” Nicole responded. Snoozing birds from within the dark canopy took flight with Nicole’s loud commotion. “You get that blanket warm.”</p>
<p>Waverly paced the small space, collecting small sticks and dry leaves, clearly ignoring the stubborn woman’s commands. She dropped the firestarter beside the backpack and plopped her figure down to the icy dirt. She rubbed her hands together yet again, desperate for warmth. </p>
<p>“I got wood,” Nicole called. “And I found a few bananas. I heard your stomach rumbling from a mile away; you must be starving.”</p>
<p>“Did you find any water?” Waverly unpacked the two empty coconuts as she dug within the backpack for the blanket.</p>
<p>“No,” She flung the dry wood onto the pile the Waverly created. “Thanks for putting this together.”</p>
<p>“I couldn’t let you do all the work,” The brunette wrapped the emergency blanket around herself as Nicole worked on creating a spark.  Not that they needed one.</p>
<p>“We have fire!” Nicole cheered as a small spark ignited the dry leaves. Getting to the fire’s level, she blew oxygen into the tiny flame. Her pupils widened as the flame doubled in size. </p>
<p>“Thank goodness,” Waverly said, holding the blanket open for the other woman. The smell of smoke tickled her senses. “Now let me warm you up.”</p>
<p>The redhead snatched the two fruits from the ground before falling to Waverly’s side. The shorter woman wrapped the rough emergency blanket around the two and snuggled into the redhead’s side at once.</p>
<p>“You’re freezing, Nic.” The icy chill of Nicole’s skin brushed against her own, causing goosebumps to line her arms. </p>
<p>“Well, why don’t you warm me up then?” She said. She bit the inside of her lip to hide the chattering of her teeth. Her eyes locked onto the flame as it licked the log. Warmth flooded throughout their makeshift campsite. </p>
<p>Waverly slid her arm around Nicole’s neck, tugging her in closer. Her digits tangled with the baby fine red hairs at the neck’s base. Without a moment of hesitation, Waverly brushed her soft, warm lips against Nicole’s trembling, frigid ones. A hardy moan escaped the redhead as she snaked her arm around Waverly’s waist. She needed more contact. </p>
<p>The brunette’s tongue explored the dark, warm cavern’s of Nicole’s mouth. Shivers of passion and pleasure soon replaced their quivers from the chill. Waverly propelled Nicole to the ground, like an airplane swooping into its destination. </p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole paused, gasping for air. Her heart pounded against her ribcage as Waverly’s fingertips skimmed across the redhead’s collarbone. She wanted to spend her entire life memorizing every inch of Nicole’s smooth, radiating skin. A burning desire grew within the redhead’s chest and an ache ignited between her legs.</p>
<p>“I want this,” The youngest Earp said.  Her fingers dipped underneath Nicole’s uniformed as she traced the swell of her breasts. “I want you.”</p>
<p>“I want you too,” The redhead admitted, releasing a gasp of air she didn’t realize she was holding. She ran a rough yet desperate hand through her crisp, red hair. The feel of Waverly against her too much. How long could she control her motions? “Are you sure?”</p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly’s fingers traced the buttons on the other woman’s shirt. “I have never been more sure of anything.”</p>
<p> The haze locked onto green as Waverly unbuttoned one button on Nicole’s uniform. Her fingertips brushed against soft skin as she trailed to the next, then the next, and the next. Nicole’s heart skipped a beat as the smell and feel of Waverly became hypnotic. Her own hands found purchase on Waverly’s smooth, muscular back. With every tantalizing movement, more and more of Waverly’s lush skin became exposed. Her fingertips skated against the band of the woman’s bra strap, tingling with desire to unsnap the garment. Shaking the thoughts of her mind, she flipped the shorter woman onto her back, gaining control. </p>
<p>Waverly tingled; Nicole’s frame against hers felt like a fantasy come to life. Nicole licked her lips as her green eyes burned with desire. Hungry for more of the redhead, the brunette darted forward, claiming her mouth yet again.</p>
<p>The sound of a twig snapping behind the couple sent the sheriff’s senses into high alert. Her eyes darted around the pitch black night, desperate to find the cause. A pair of bright eyes locked onto hers, the same way Calamity Jane’s eyes do in the middle of the night. A sexually frustrated groan fell from her mouth and into Waverly’s warm ears as a droplet of rain splashed onto her naked back.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Please leave comments and kudos to let me know if you are enjoying this fic!</p>
<p>Find me on Twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. It's Either Lust or a Cloud of Dust</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I am here! With a broken pinky (which really f's with typing and using the computer you know.) Also ignoring that maid of honor speech I have to write for next month...</p>
<p>So suffice to say... this chapter has not been edited to 100% of my liking, but i've made you wait long enough! Also, because of that, I combined two chapters into one, screw the cliffhanger!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 12</p>
<p>“What is it?” Waverly asked as she tried desperately to see, but her position blocked her view.  The shadow took another step forward and Nicole’s eyes squinted as she analyzed the dark shadow.</p>
<p>“It’s Champ,” Her face paled as she pushed Waverly away as if someone had caught her with her hand in the cookie jar. Waverly’s grip on the redhead tightened.</p>
<p>“Don’t go,” Waverly whispered into the redhead’s ear; her fiery breath causing goosebumps to run along her form. Cold droplets fell onto her soft skin. “He’s not really here. He’s just a hallucination. It’s just us, Nic.”</p>
<p>Her sultry mouth captured the redhead’s earlobe, and she captured it in her warm mouth. An involuntary moan fell from the Nicole’s mouth as it became harder and harder to resist.  Releasing the lobe from her mouth with a pop, Waverly’s desire struck pupils met her boyfriend’s. With unrenounced strength, Champ snatched Nicole by the neck of her opened uniformed shirt, flinging her across the open space as if she was a rag doll. The redhead pummelled to the tree’s rough back, an indentation immediately lining her back. Her hand spilled onto her stomach, white and yellow pus leaking onto her once clean hand before her vision darkened as if she was taking part in a black and white movie. <br/>“Nicole!” Waverly cried in terror. She pushed the man away, desperate to check on Nicole, but he pinned her to the ground with an insurmountable force. She struggled against his weight, unable to get a grip on his gleaming figure. “Champ, get off of me.”</p>
<p>“Why should I?” He asked. He held her wrists against the ground, his perfectly clean fingernails etching into the muddy dirt. “You’re mine.”</p>
<p>“I’m no ones,” Waverly said, spit slicing into his face like daggers. Water seeped into the material of her well-worn bra. “Especially not yours.”</p>
<p>“That’s what you think,” An evil glint creeped into his eyes. He shuffled her wrists into his left hand as he held them to the ground with ease. His right hand slid down to her stomach. He lifted the bottom of her shirt and splayed his hand on her stomach. “This says otherwise.”</p>
<p>Waverly’s face paled, and blood rushed to her ears. She couldn’t. There was no way.<br/>“That means nothing, Champ,” She told him as his palm splayed against her abdomen. As his rough fingers scraped against her skin, she pounded her knee in between his legs and he wailed. His body dropped like dead weight, but she flipped him off with ease.</p>
<p>“You’re connected to me forever,” His sinister smirk caused a wave of nausea within her stomach. Her soaked hair fell in front of her eyes as she dodged the younger man. “Forever, Waverly.”</p>
<p>She stalked forward, not allowing her warnings to bother her. She needed to get to Nicole. She watched as the redhead blinked over and over, her eyes lacking focus and bouncing wildly from one tree to another. Before the youngest Earp could take another step, Champ’s fingertips threaded through soaked brunette hair, and he tossed her to the ground as if she was a light decorative pillow being thrown to the ground. </p>
<p>“Come on, babe,” Champ stood over her. “Let’s have a repeat of that night. The night we made this possible.”</p>
<p>Waverly’s neck snapped as she looked over to Nicole one last time. Small involuntary shrieks of pain fell from the redhead’s mouth, breaking her heart. She bit the side of her lip, causing her mouth to bleed. </p>
<p>“That sounds like a great idea,” She rose to her knees, unbuttoning and unzipping his pants.</p>
<p>“There you go, Waves.” He said as a smirk stabbed across his face.  “Doesn’t that feel better?”</p>
<p>Waverly gripped onto his hips, but before she pulled him any closer to her, her nails bit into his precious skin. She shoved him to the ground, not feeling any sympathy when he wailed from the heavy impact. Climbing on top of him, she pinned him to the ground with a knee to his crotch. More tears welled in his eyes than could have filled the well Doc was trapped in. </p>
<p>“I can give you so much more than she ever could, you know.” Champ’s voice squeaked in agony. “I gave you this wonderful gift.”</p>
<p>“All you ever gave me was a headache,” Waverly said. “I never loved you, Champ. I thought I did, I really did. But I was just fooling myself.”</p>
<p>“No one will ever want you, Waverly.” He said. “No one will ever want an Earp.”</p>
<p>She looked up, her eyes falling upon an almost slumbering Nicole. </p>
<p>“While I doubt that,” she argued, “I would actually rather be alone than with you.”</p>
<p>“You don’t mean that,” He tried one last time as his figure disappeared into thin air. Caught off balance, she barely saved herself from face planting on the ground. Water droplets evaporated into the air right before her eyes. </p>
<p>“Nicole!” Waverly wailed. She dashed to the redhead, worry etched into her face. Nicole stared right at her, but it didn’t seem like she could see her.</p>
<p>“I’m okay, Waves,” Nicole spoke, unable to keep her eyes locked into one position. “I want to nap.”</p>
<p>“No,” Waverly commanded. She brushed the hair out of her eyes and placed her hand on her cheek. “I need you to stay awake, baby, please.”</p>
<p>“I don’t know if I can, Waves,” A yawn escaped the redhead’s mouth. </p>
<p>“You have to,” She said. She rubbed her hands against the woman’s wet and freezing pale arms. “You’re freezing. We’ve got to get you warm.”</p>
<p>“I’m okay,” Nicole whispered. “Unless you’re cold.”</p>
<p>“You have a concussion and you’re worried about me?” Waverly smiled. “Do you think you can stand?”</p>
<p>“Of course,” Nicole said. She tried to stand but her entire body swayed, causing her to almost crashed back to the ground.</p>
<p>“Woah there,” She wrapped her arm around Nicole’s waist, balancing the wavering woman. “I’ve got you.”</p>
<p>“Yeah you do,” She leaned down as they walked, attempting to rest her head on the other woman’s shoulder, but the height difference made her sway yet again.   </p>
<p>“Okay, down we go,” Waverly’s grip tightened as she lowered the older woman onto the ground beside the dwindling fire. Her fingertips slipped from the redhead for a quick second as she threw another piece of wood onto the fire. </p>
<p>“Can I sleep now?” Nicole whined.</p>
<p>“How’s your vision?” She asked. “Can you see me?”</p>
<p>“I always see you,” She said. “Even in my dreams.”</p>
<p>“Even injured you are a charmer.” She lay a kiss on her forehead.</p>
<p>“It’s foggy, Waves,” She admitted. “I can see shadows.”</p>
<p>“It’s going to be okay. I’m going to take care of you.” The brunette snatched a banana from beside them, returning to Nicole’s side milliseconds before she dove into the fire. “Woah there, baby. How do you feel about a banana?”</p>
<p>“Okay,” Nicole said. “I think I’m hungry.”</p>
<p>Waverly chuckled as she peeled the banana. “You think? We haven’t eaten in two days!”</p>
<p>She held the bruised banana out to the Nicole. Instead of taking it into her own possession, the redhead leaned forward and took a large bite.</p>
<p>“Delicious,” She wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth. Waverly took a bite herself, moaning in satisfaction. </p>
<p>After they polished off the two fruits, Nicole tried yet again. “Can I sleep now?”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Waverly agreed, though her voice was full of hesitancy. She grabbed the emergency blanket and laid it on the redhead. She rested her head on Nicole’s chest, happy to hear her strong heartbeat. “Promise to wake me up if you aren’t feeling yourself.”</p>
<p>“Of course, Waves,” She mumbled, dropping a goodnight kiss on the other woman’s forehead. Within seconds, Waverly listened to the other woman’s soft snoring as if it were a lullaby.</p>
<p>“What am I going to do?” Waverly asked rhetorically, her eyes fading into the dark night sky. She placed her warm hand on her stomach, as if it could protect the tiny life inside. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Jeremy!” Robin called from Shorty’s doorway, blustering in with the cold Purgatory wind.</p>
<p>“Hey Robbie!” Jeremy shouted back, waving wildly with his free hand.</p>
<p>“Did you come and join his team?” Wynonna asked, leaning against the pool table. “Trust me, he needs it.”</p>
<p>“Wynonna!” The younger man titled his head in confusion, the gold substance affecting his nervous system. “He’s already on my team, remember? Unicorn alert!”</p>
<p>The taller man chuckled. He grabbed the drink from Jeremy’s paws and set it on the velvet green surface. “I’m not here to play.”</p>
<p>“Seriously?” Jermy whined. “Wynonna was right, I need you.”</p>
<p>Wynonna chuckled. “I have never seen someone accidentally sink the eight ball so many times! We’ve stopped restarting the game and just putting it back on the table.”</p>
<p>“Well, you might have to re-rack those balls, because we have a lead!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> “You feeling okay?” Waverly’s hands swung by her side. Her fingertips danced around Nicole’s hands, tingling for more contact.</p>
<p>“So far so good,” Nicole’s hand darted to the burning sensation in her abdomen. She could handle it. “How about you?”</p>
<p>“I’m sure you just had a concussion,” She admitted. “And you’re still worried about me?” </p>
<p>“I’m always worried about you,” She said. “I just want to keep you safe.” </p>
<p>“And you always do,” Like a moth to a flame, Waverly’s fingers interlocked with Nicole’s. Raising the palm to her mouth, she pressed a soft kiss against the delicate yet rough skin. </p>
<p>“You see that?” Nicole’s hand slipped from Waverly’s as she pointed toward the distance. Laid across a most likely frozen river was a set of haphazard rocks and logs, but most definitely man made. “That looks like a human built it.”</p>
<p>Waverly chased behind the taller woman, her short legs no match for Nicole’s long ones. At the river’s edge, the redhead squatted down, tapping her knuckles on icy water. </p>
<p>“Beavers?” The youngest Earp asked, desperate not to get her hopes up.</p>
<p>“I don’t think so.” Nicole chucked a rock at the bridge, analyzing its stability before they were to cross. “We have to be getting close, right?”</p>
<p>“I think so,” Waverly agreed. “The bridge must have been made before the river froze. The only question is, how long ago was it built?”</p>
<p>“I’m not sure.” Nicole hesitated. “I am going to cross the river using the bridge. Hopefully, the water froze enough so it can hold our weight if the bridge can’t.”</p>
<p>“Why do you get to go first?” She questioned. “It’s not fair that you are always the one to protect me.”</p>
<p>“I know,” The redhead smirked, brushing her lips against the crown of Waverly’s head. “And you can. After we get out of the here!”</p>
<p>Before the brunette could utter another word, the redhead set her left foot onto the unsteady bridge. Her hearing perked as she listened for any sound of creaking or snapping. Nothing. Holding her breath, she took another step, then another, as the silent ice trembled underneath her feet. </p>
<p>“That’s not fair!” The brunette shouted from her vantage point on the sidelines. Once Nicole’s foot pounded on to the frost-bitten ground on the opposite side of the river, Waverly began her own journey. Holding her breath, she took a step after step, slow but careful. With Nicole locked into her vision, she strolled forward, anxiety raging within her chest. Nightmares of the half-frozen lake at the homestead stirred inside, causing her breaking to quicken and body to quake.</p>
<p>“Almost there, Waves,” Nicole called, sensing the other woman’s apprehension. Green eyes locked onto hazel, giving Waverly the confidence to quicken her stride until she took her final two steps onto land. </p>
<p>“I made it!” The youngest Earp bellowed, wrapping her arms against the other woman and holding her tight. </p>
<p>“I knew you would,” Through her smile, Nicole snuck a quick peck onto the other woman’s soft lips. Waverly’s hands threaded through red hair as their lips crashed together. A soft sigh fell from her lips as Nicole deepened the kiss. </p>
<p>“Sorry,” Waverly apologized, gasping for breath. “I can’t get enough of you. I’ve waited forever to taste you, and now that I have, I’m like more, please.”</p>
<p>Nicole smirked. “The feeling is mutual. I would say we wouldn’t have to stop, but you must be freezing.”</p>
<p>Waverly rubbed her hands together to create warmth. “You could keep me more than warm.”</p>
<p>“I tried last night,” Nicole smirked. “If only we weren’t interrupted by your fucking- Champ.” </p>
<p>“Nicole,” Her warm palm slipped to her stomach. “Can we take a seat?”</p>
<p>“Here?” The redhead looked around. Without a second’s notice, she dropped the backpack on the ground and plopped beside it. She unzipped the container and grabbed the blanket before the other woman could even sit down, thankful the ground wasn’t wet.</p>
<p>“I don’t know what you remember from last night.” Waverly’s voice trembled as the anxiety bubbled within the redhead. The brunette could feel the inner turmoil raging within the sheriff as her insecurities boiled to the surface, threatening to spill over. Ignoring her emotions, Nicole wrapped the blanket around Waverly, cocooning them in warmth. </p>
<p>“I couldn’t hear anything,” Nicole admitted as uncertain images of Waverly on top of Champ clouded her already aching brain. “But I could see shadows. Dark shadows. And fog, lots of fog.”</p>
<p>“Okay well,” The youngest Earp took a deep breath. She intertwined their fingers, searching for the safety she could only find in Nicole.</p>
<p>“God, you’re cold.” The redhead interjected, placing her warm hand on top of Waverly’s, as if this was the last time they would hold hands. </p>
<p>“Sorry,” Waverly took another deep breath, her eyes flickering like an oil lamp seconds away from burning out “I need you to know that everything happening between us, this relationship is real to me.” </p>
<p>Waverly slid their hands out from beneath the blanket, dropping a kiss on the top of the redhead’s hand. </p>
<p>“But?” The taller woman asked. She knew something was wrong,  but she couldn’t pinpoint what exactly. She could feel Waverly trembling, and it wasn’t from the cold.</p>
<p>“There’s no but about it, Nicole.” Waverly said. “When we get out of here, it’s you I want to be with. It’s not Champ, it’s never been Champ. I wish you could have heard that last night-”</p>
<p>“Sorry, my ears were ringing.”</p>
<p>“Don’t be sorry,” Waverly said. “I wish I could kick his ass when we get home, but poor guy won’t even know what happened. Seeing as it wasn’t really him.”</p>
<p>“It seemed like you wanted him last night,” Nicole bit her own lip, moisture forming in her eyes. </p>
<p>“No, Nicole,” Waverly said. “Do you have any idea how long I’ve been battling my feelings for you?”</p>
<p>“Then why didn’t you say anything?”</p>
<p>“Because I was scared.” She said. “Scared you were going to think I was just experimenting. It also scared me to think you wouldn’t want me because I was an Earp.”</p>
<p>“Oh Waves,” Nicole squeezed her hand tighter. “That’s so far from the truth. I love every single part of you.”</p>
<p>“Really?” Waverly’s voice shook. “You love me?”</p>
<p>Nicole chuckled. “I thought that much was obvious.”</p>
<p>“I haven’t had much experience with love in my life,” Waverly admitted. “I’m terrified to screw this up.”</p>
<p>“You won’t,” Nicole said. “For as long as you want me, I will be on your side.”</p>
<p>“How’s forever?”</p>
<p>“Sounds perfect.”</p>
<p>“I don’t think you are going to feel the same after I tell you the truth,” Waverly took a deep breath. “I think I’m pregnant. I think I’ve been having morning sickness, that’s why I’ve been throwing up all the time.”</p>
<p>Nicole felt her ears redden as jealousy rose within her. More visions of Waverly and Champ clicked through her mind, like she was looking through a child’s view master. Now she and Champ were going to be a family, and she would be thrown to the sidelines yet again.. She was such a fool to think Waverly could love her. “Champ?”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” She huffed. Her free hand slumped to her stomach as she cupped the small baby inside. “I can’t, you know. I have to keep it.”</p>
<p>“I would never want you to do something you weren’t comfortable with,” Nicole said. “Whatever you want, Waves, it’s your decision. And if we are together-”</p>
<p>“Not if or when,” Waverly scolded. “I want to be yours now, Nicole. I don’t want to wait until we get home. We’ve missed so much time already.”</p>
<p>Nicole took a deep sigh. “Well, I want you to know that I will step into whatever role you and Champ decide you want me to have in the child’s life. I know the child is not mine, and I wouldn’t want to overstep any boundaries.”</p>
<p>“That’s exactly it, Nicole,” She thrust Nicole’s hand into her lap, immediately warming both their hands from the heat. “I don’t want you to worry about any boundaries. I want you to be in this child’s life in every single way possible. Nicole, when I have this baby, I want you to be his or her other mother. I don’t care what Champ wants. I mean-”</p>
<p>“Really?” Water pooled in Nicole’s eyes as her jaw fell in disbelief. Waverly wiped away the warm, salty tear that traced Nicole’s profile. “I thought you were going to say that you didn’t want us anymore.”</p>
<p>“No, Nicole, not at all. I want this exact opposite.” She said. “I know this is a lot. One minute I’m telling you I want to be together, and then not even like a week later I’m telling you I want you to be the mother to my child-”</p>
<p>Without waiting for another sound to escape from the other woman’s mouth, Nicole shoved Waverly to the ground, climbing on top of her. “I would absolutely love to be in your child’s life.”</p>
<p>“Our child.” The brunette corrected, a goofy grin appearing on both their faces. The redhead leaned down, capturing Waverly’s lips with her own. As the brunette’s tongue glided against the other woman’s bottom lip, begging for entry, Nicole’s face paled as a thought terrorized her mind.</p>
<p>“Oh my god, Waverly,” Nicole fell off the other woman. “Did I hurt it?”</p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>“By getting on top of you?” She asked. “Did I hurt the baby?”</p>
<p>“No, no, sweetie,” Waverly caressed her cheek with the pad of her thumb. “The baby’s more than okay. Plus, I’ve been sleeping on my stomach like every night.”</p>
<p>“Yeah, but I weigh like double what you do.”</p>
<p>Waverly dropped a kiss on her nose. “No, you don’t.” She grabbed Nicole’s warm hand and placed it on her stomach. “I know you can’t feel anything yet, but it’s there. There’s a baby there. Our baby.”</p>
<p>As she went to rest her head on Waverly’s chest, a bright flame off in the distance caught her attention. A shadow of a man danced around the light before disappearing from her line of sight. </p>
<p>“Waverly,” she gestured toward the fire. “I think we might have found the person Julian was talking about.”</p>
<p>The brunette snapped her head to her left, her eyes locking with the same scene.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading and leaving comments or kudos (or even better, both!) Find me on twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. All My Sins Need Holy Water</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Oh my gosh I was soo certain I was not going to make this update tonight! but yet here we are!! </p>
<p>Quick warning: this chapter is most definitely the reason for the M rating. You have been warned (Cough cough don't read this at work. Or do if that is your flavor.)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 13</p>
<p>“Do you want to chat with him?” Nicole whispered as she tried to plan. Side by side, they hid in the shadows, crouching behind a large pine bush as the man warmed by the fire. </p>
<p>“You’re more charming than I am,” Waverly spread the branches of the vegetation and poked her head through the leaves, watching as he added more wood to his ever growing fire. </p>
<p>“No one can say no to you.”</p>
<p>The younger woman interlaced their fingers. “I think that is  a problem for only you, Nicole. Strangers have no problem saying no to me.” </p>
<p>Nicole glanced from the middle-aged man and back again. “Do you recognize him?”</p>
<p>“No,” Waverly squinted in his direction. “Do you think he is another hallucination?” </p>
<p>“Not if you don’t recognize him, no.” The redhead stated. “The hallucinations seemed to take the shape of people from your history. Whatever their testing, it’s a test for you. I’m just the sidekick.”</p>
<p>“You’ve noticed that too?” Waverly asked, squeezing their hands. “You are more than a sidekick, Nicole.”</p>
<p>“Well, it would be my pleasure to be your sidekick.” Nicole smiled as she took one last glance at the dirty blonde-haired man. “You ready?”</p>
<p>“Ready Freddie.” She replied.</p>
<p>“Hello there, sir,” Nicole spoke as her Purgatory Sheriff’s badge shined in the bright winter sun. The man jumped in surprise, his long hair falling in front of his face from the sudden movement. Between the long strands, his face paled from both anger and embarrassment.</p>
<p>“Who are you?” He snatched a burning stick from the firepit, holding it out as if it was a cutlass. As the flame died, smoke washed over the makeshift campsite.  </p>
<p>“We come in peace,” Nicole chuckled at her own joke until she took in the somber look on Waverly’s face; when was the last time he had seen the light of day? He would not be familiar with pop culture. </p>
<p>“What she means is we aren’t here to hurt you,” Waverly held her hands up like the British waving a white flag in the middle of the American Revolution. “I’m Waverly Earp and this is Nicole Haught.”</p>
<p>“How did you get in here?” </p>
<p>“Have you heard of Bulshar?” Waverly sensed recognition and tension in his pupils, so she continued.  “He was trying to open the garden, but my family and I stopped him, but Nicole and I got stuck here as collateral damage.”</p>
<p>Nicole watched as his limbs trembled from anxiety and worry. He hadn’t seen people in decades, no wonder he had trepidations. “What about you? How did you end up here?”</p>
<p>“When my wife died,” The man lowered the smoking stick and brushed his hair from his eyes. “My son took me here to protect me, but I haven’t seen him in ages. He left me here, and I’ve never seen him or anyone else. Until you two.”</p>
<p>“How long have you been here?” The redhead investigated.</p>
<p>“I don’t know for sure. Decades, I think.” He shrugged his shoulders and poked the fire with the cooling stick. “It feels like centuries, but I know that can’t be true. I would be dead by now.”</p>
<p>“How did your son get here?”</p>
<p>“What’s with the inquisition?” He removed his weapon from the fire and held it at Nicole’s neck. “I should ask you those questions. How do I know you don’t want to destroy me? How do I know you aren’t one of those hallucinations desperate to get me to open the gate?”</p>
<p>“Sorry, sir, we were just curious.” Waverly sighed, glancing back at Nicole to get her to stand down. They had to try another tactic. “Julian sent us. Do you know Julian?”</p>
<p>“Julian?” The man’s neck twisted and his eyes widened, his few gray strands of hair reflected from the flame’s light. “He was here?”</p>
<p>“No, sorry, sir,” The flickering red and orange burned into Nicole’s eyes.  “Julian passed away in Purgatory.”</p>
<p>Hot, salty water dribbled down his chin and dripped onto the frosty ground. “No, you’re lying.”</p>
<p>“I hate to be the one to tell you this,” Nicole continued. “He was killed in the line of duty, saving someone very dear to us.”</p>
<p>He stood toe to toe with the sheriff as his face reddened in anger. “It was your fault he died then?”</p>
<p>“No, sir-”</p>
<p>“Wait,” Waverly interrupted as her mind formulated the truth. “Are you Julian’s father?”</p>
<p>“Holy shit,” Nicole whispered. As she analyzed the other man, she detected the similarities in his eye color and luscious brunette hair; it had to be. </p>
<p>“I didn’t say that,” He spit, taking another step forward. “Who told you that?”</p>
<p>“Sir,” Waverly stepped forward, ignoring the heat radiating from the steaming stick he still held in defense.  “I’m Waverly, Julian’s daughter. If Julian is your son, that would make me your granddaughter.”</p>
<p>“No,” His trembling fingertips slipped, and the weapon fell from clutches, lighting the dry pine. Nicole stomped on the embers, protecting the entire not-garden from lighting ablaze. “Julian protected the garden. He did not get a woman pregnant.”</p>
<p>“He did,” Waverly explained. “And I’m the product. My mom was being abused and Julian saved her.” </p>
<p>“Stop,” He screamed. “You’re trying to confuse me. You’re just another one of them.”</p>
<p>“No, we aren’t. Look at her eyes,” Nicole commanded. “They look like yours.”</p>
<p>He glared at Waverly’s face, but instead of recognition, anger flashed across his features. “I haven’t seen my damn eyes in decades. How the hell do you expect me to remember what they look like?”</p>
<p>“Sorry,” Nicole muttered. </p>
<p>Waverly analyzed his movements, recognized something she found within her own self; stubbornness. Either way, he would not believe her, short of a DNA test.</p>
<p>“Julian wanted us to find you.” She changed the subject, trying to cool the man’s temper. “Did Julian tell you how to get home?”</p>
<p>“Don’t you think I would have left ages ago if I did?” His bitter voice was like sharp knives to Nicole’s eardrums.</p>
<p>“Have you tried to leave?” The redhead questioned.</p>
<p>“No,” He turned back toward the fireplace, trying to signal the end of the conversation. “I sat here and waited for my son. I did nothing more, nothing less.”</p>
<p>“Where have you found food and water?” Concern laced Waverly’s face. </p>
<p>“You come here and lie to me about my son and now you expect me to tell you where I store my resources?” He snickered. “I don’t think so.”</p>
<p>“We are sorry for bothering you,” Nicole said. She tried to snatch Waverly’s hand, but it slipped through her fingertips.</p>
<p>“Have you ever thought about taking Julian’s place?”</p>
<p>“No,” He replied, not bothered by the two women. “What makes you think I could even stand on the post?”</p>
<p>“Well, if Julian was your son, I would assume you have angel blood.”</p>
<p>“What is your angle here, woman?” He asked. “Are you trying to get me to open the garden? Are you working with those devils? There’s a reason the garden is closed and I will not open the gates.”</p>
<p>“Come on, Waves,” Nicole whispered. “Let’s give him some time.”</p>
<p>“Time?” He scoffed. “How about forever? Don’t come find me again.”</p>
<p>Tears welled into Waverly’s eyes as Nicole wrapped her arm around her shoulder, tucking the shorter woman into her side. She dropped a kiss on the side of the brunette’s head. </p>
<p>“He doesn’t mean it, Waves,” She said as their steps synchronized. “He hasn’t seen people in decades and is scared of us. And he’s worried we are another hallucination.”</p>
<p>“It’s my grandfather,” She peered at the man one last time. “I have more family that doesn’t want me.”</p>
<p>“That’s not true,” Nicole squeezed her tighter. “He just doesn’t know you, baby. Once he does, he will wonder how he ever lived without you.”</p>
<p>“Do you think Julian thought he could open the gate?” She swiped the salty tears from her cheek with the back of her hand. “Or did he just want me to meet his father?”</p>
<p>“I’m not sure, Waves,” She could feel the other woman shake. “Maybe he hoped he would?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, well, that will not happen.” Waverly shrugged her shoulders. </p>
<p>“We will give him some time; he will come around.”</p>
<p>Her warm hand clenched around her stomach. “I’m not exactly sure how much time we have.”</p>
<p>The redhead froze as her heart dropped, and she peered at the other woman. “Oh my god, are you okay? Was that too much stress? I think I read somewhere pregnant woman should not get stressed.”</p>
<p>The shorter woman rocked onto her tippy toes, planting a quick kiss on the redhead’s red nose. “I’m okay, but I don’t want to have a baby here. I want my baby to grow up safe and normal.”</p>
<p>“And he or she will, Waves,” Nicole latched onto the brunette’s hand, interlacing their tips as they walked side by side to their dwindling fire. “I will make sure of it.”</p>
<p>The younger woman shivered as the chilly wind froze her nose. “Together.”</p>
<p>Nicole rubbed her hands against the other woman’s freezing arms. “How would you feel if we continue our walk? I’m hoping we could find some warm weather, and maybe even some unfrozen water. I think I smell.”</p>
<p>“That sounds lovely,” Waverly’s chin chattered. “I’m surprised I haven’t turned into a popsicle.”</p>
<p>“You’d be a cute popsicle,” The redhead grinned. </p>
<p>“How can someone be a cute popsicle, Nicole?”</p>
<p>“Have you seen yourself?” She slung the backpack over her shoulders, wincing in pain. She bit her lip as she glanced back to Waverly, who hadn’t seemed to notice her grimace. “I figure now that we know where your grandfather is, we can find him again if we need to. It doesn’t look like he’s moved in the past twenty years.”</p>
<p>“Not like he wants to help us anyway,” She sniped. </p>
<p>“You will see him again, Waverly, I promise.” She held her arm out, tugging onto the shoulder strap of the backpack. “After you, gorgeous.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Dozens of feet behind them, an ageless man hid in the shadows, waiting for the right time. Unfortunately, the right time was not now. He tugged on his cowboy hat, hiding his evil, pale face from view. He took one last puff on his cigarillo, a smirk scratching his face as the two women joked. Turning away from the women, he evaporated into thin air, like a spring rain in the middle of the scorching desert. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Jeremy wrapped the quilt around his form as waves of nausea multiplied. His cracking headache multiplied, as if his brain was a peanut and an elephant was stomping onto it. Saliva dribbled from his chapped lips and trailed his chin. He cracked open his eyes and glanced out the moving window. The world spun around him as his stomach fell to his feet with a crashing thump. His hand gripped onto the small console in between the two car seats. </p>
<p>“I told you we should have let him sit in the back.” The voice echoed like a music box playing in his head. He raised his heavy eyelids halfway, only for them to fall shut yet again. </p>
<p>“Here,” The voice continued. He felt small plastic pills being slipped into his bleak, clammy hand. “These pain killers will help.”</p>
<p>“You Earps and your drinking,” A man’s voice chuckled from the front seat. Jeremy immediately recognized it as his boyfriend. He felt a water bottle being slipped into his empty palm. “Drink. Alcohol dehydrates you.”</p>
<p>As he leaned his head against the frosty glass window, the car sped over a pothole, and his stomach leapt to his throat. He clenched his mouth shut as he pounded on the button to make the window lower. </p>
<p>“Not in the car, not in the car!” Wynonna screamed from the car’s back seat.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“My feet hurt!” Waverly complained. They had been walking as winter turned into spring and spring turned into summer in front of their eyes. The younger woman leaned against the tree and slipped off her sweaty shoes and socks, rubbing the arch of her foot.</p>
<p>Nicole glanced up at the sky, calculating the time using the sun. “We’ll quit soon. Do you want to take a break? Or even better, I can carry you?”</p>
<p>“Nicole, you can’t.”</p>
<p>The redhead stalked over to the tiny woman, taking it as a challenge. With no hesitation, she scooped the younger woman up and spun her to her back, giving her what children refer to as a piggy-back ride. A slight tear echoed in her ears. “See, easy peas-y.”</p>
<p>“How greedy would I be if I allowed you to carry me?” Waverly argued.</p>
<p>“Well, you’re carrying my baby and my backpack.” Nicole planted a kiss on the small wrists wrapped around her neck. “I think the least I can do is carry you.”</p>
<p>“Alright fine,” Waverly sighed. “Just for a little while.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The tree’s leaves sheltered him from the sun’s fading rays. He watched the scene unfold like an episode of an old western. Though she called him by name, asked for him, pleaded with him, but still, he continued to hide in the shadows. He could not make any sudden movements or alert the guests to his presence. He needed to complete what the others had not only failed at, but failed miserably at. He dropped his vice onto the dry ground. The surrounding leaves smoked, and the smell tingled his senses. As he vanished, so did any presence that he had ever existed. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Water!” Waverly screamed as her eyes fell upon the first water they had seen in forever. The redhead loosened her grip on the other woman’s thighs, and the youngest Earp slid to the ground. Her mouth watered as she remembered just how thirsty she really was. </p>
<p>“I think there is enough moonlight to swim.” Nicole opened the backpack from the other woman’s back and handed her the filtering straw. </p>
<p>Waverly glanced up at the full moon hanging high in the sky. “That would be amazing. But first, go get water, you deserve it.”</p>
<p>“Me?” Nicole chuckled as she pushed the straw at the other woman. “You’re the one who needs to stay hydrated enough for two.”</p>
<p>“And you were carrying three!”</p>
<p>“Fine,” She headed closer to the lake, her sneakers sinking deeper and deeper in the mud. She took a large gulp of water, her veins singing in relief. She held the utensil as the other woman dropped her head and sucked, keeping her eyes locked on her.</p>
<p>“You know,” Waverly said in between gulps. “When you caught me here, I didn’t run away because you being gay embarrassed me. I was too busy drooling over you, I didn’t notice you watching me.”</p>
<p>“Waverly Earp!” Nicole gasped as she untied her water-logged sneakers. “Did you like what you saw?”</p>
<p>“I like what I still see,” She smirked, an evil idea floating around her mind. She climbed onto the older woman’s lap. Her fingers danced around the button on the other woman’s once form fitting jeans. “I just wish I could see more.”</p>
<p>“You want to see more?” Nicole’s fingertips found the bottom of the Waverly’s shirt. “I think it’s only fair you return the favor.”</p>
<p>Waverly’s lips brushed against redhead’s in the lightest and gentlest of kisses. “I think that can be arranged.”</p>
<p>Within one swoop, she flung the thinning blouse over her head, revealing her sun-kissed skin. The redhead’s eyes widened as they devoured every inch of her delicious and smooth skin. </p>
<p>“Do you like what you see?” Waverly’s teeth scratched against Nicole’s earlobe as goosebumps lined her skin.</p>
<p>The redhead opened her mouth to speak, but rough air sputtered from her mouth. Her fingers tingled centimeters above the smooth skin, dying to feel what the brunette felt like.</p>
<p>“You can touch me, you know,” Waverly whispered, peppering kisses across Nicole’s collarbone. Her fingers tickled against the buttons as she worked to tear her shirt off. After what seemed like a century, she felt the pads of Nicole’s fingers trace the outline of her bra, just dipping low enough to tease the hard nub.</p>
<p>“Okay, I’m done with this,” The youngest Earp commented. With shaky hands, she gripped the half-buttoned shirt and shoved it over the redhead’s shoulders. Her pupils dilated in anticipation as her fingers grazed against the other woman’s warm skin. “You are beautiful.”</p>
<p>“Me?” Nicole’s voice squeaked like she was a boy going through puberty. “Have you seen yourself?”</p>
<p>“Can I?” Her digits danced underneath the soft material she was oh so desperate to get rid of. </p>
<p>“I’m all yours,” She admitted. She tilted her head down and placed soft kisses all around the cup of the other woman’s bra. Without warning, her warm tongue darted underneath the cotton, getting just a tease of the hardness.</p>
<p>“Holy shit,” Waverly sputtered, her fingernails clawing against the other woman’s back. </p>
<p>“Baby, we’re just getting started,” The redhead smirked. Without even taking a second to breathe, she unsnapped the material, watching as Waverly’s creamy, silky breasts fell from their jail. </p>
<p>“Nicole,” Waverly called, her breath hitching as the other woman grazed her dusty red nipple. </p>
<p>“Yeah?” The redhead asked, her eyes fully blown with arousal. Her hands kneaded the other woman’s chest, causing her to grind against her leg. </p>
<p>“Off,” Waverly commanded. She no longer had the patience with the redhead’s offending shirt. She attacked the other woman’s lips with bruising kisses, as Nicole reached her arm around to relieve herself from her bra.</p>
<p>Like a moth to a flame, the younger woman disconnected their lips with a sudden pop. With an unknown bough of bravery, she attached her mouth to the redhead’s nipple, causing a moan to escape from the taller woman’s mouth.</p>
<p>“How’s that feel?” She asked, feeling the heat multiply in between the other woman’s legs. She turned to Nicole’s right side, showing it just as much love and affection.</p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole gasped, her fingers threading through flowing brunette hair. “I’m supposed… I’m supposed…” </p>
<p>She snapped her mouth away for a split second, the warm summer air tangling around their bodies. “You’re supposed to what, Nic?”</p>
<p>“I’m supposed to be in control. I’m supposed to be showing you how much better it is with a woman.”</p>
<p>“Oh, yeah?” Waverly asked, her hands dropping into Nicole’s pants, snapping and unzipping her button in an instant. Her fingers skated in between the soft and rough clothing, brushing ever so lightly against the drenched material. “I think this tells me otherwise.” </p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole moaned, her hips gyrating to find more friction.</p>
<p>“Lay back, baby,” She commanded, desperate to get a better position. The redhead followed Waverly’s directions, her whole body floating on edge just from one swipe of the brunette’s finger.</p>
<p>The younger woman dragged down the chopped jeans, the smell of want filling her senses. Without warning, she shoved aside the wet material and dipped her finger into the wetness. Her digits circled around the pulsating mound as she read the pleasure into Nicole’s eyes. The redhead’s movements became frantic, but she bit her lip, desperate to keep herself quiet.</p>
<p>“I want to hear you baby,” Waverly said, her two fingers taking a dive into their destination. She could feel Nicole’s heart beating wildly in her chest as her hips thrusted against her digits until waves of pleasure gushed from her lips </p>
<p>“Holy,” The words tumbled from Nicole’s mouth, her mind incoherent to form full sentences. “How did you-”</p>
<p>“Know how to do that?” Waverly chuckled. Her eyes locked onto Nicole’s as she dipped her soaked hand into her mouth. “I’m a quick learner, and of course, I researched what to do in case we ever got here. And I don’t know if you know, but I can read you and your body language, Nicole.”</p>
<p>“Damn,” She sputtered. “I guess you can. How are you feeling?”</p>
<p>“Like I’m in a fantasy I’m going to wake up from.”</p>
<p>“Well,” Nicole’s fingertips stroked Waverly’s heated core. “Do you have any other fantasies can make a reality?”</p>
<p>“Nicole, please,” The youngest Earp pleaded, her hips desperate to find more friction against the redhead’s soft fingertips.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>One week closer to having full control of my broken finger again! Hopefully I didn't screw up anything too bad!</p>
<p>Find me on twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
<p>Thanks for reading! Please leave comments and kudos below!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. My Selfish Decisions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I was soo scared I wasn't going to make this update, yet here I am!! </p>
<p>Have I mentioned I love the Wynonna-Jeremy-Robin relationship in this fic?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 14</p>
<p>“Nicole!” A harsh voice whispered. The loud noise stirred the woman from her deep, wonderful sleep. She peered down as drool pooled from the corner of Waverly’s mouth and onto her naked chest. As her eyes traced the outline of the brunette, the puzzle pieces connected in her brain. </p>
<p>“Julian?” She clenched the thin emergency blanket and thrust it up toward her chin, exposing her naked feet. Her palms suddenly felt dirty, as if there was dust lining the blanket.  </p>
<p>“Can I talk to you?” He whispered. “Alone.”</p>
<p>“Uh, yeah,” Nicole replied. She peered over to the haphazard pile of clothes flung off to the side of their makeshift bed, hoping the firefighter would get the picture, but to no avail. “Can I have a second?”</p>
<p>“Why?” He asked, dumbfounded. His vision followed hers as the Legos snapped together inside his mind.  “Oh yeah, I’ll give you a few minutes.”</p>
<p>“Thanks,” Nicole muttered. As a sigh of relief fell from her lips, the man vanished before her eyes, leaving a small breeze in his wake. “That was interesting.” </p>
<p>She slid from underneath Waverly’s grasp and tucked the emergency blanket around the younger girl. She slipped on her clothes as quiet as possible, hoping the brunette would continue her peaceful slumber. As she wiped the sleep from her eyes, the man reappeared right before her.</p>
<p>“Hey,” Nicole whispered as she nodded her head toward the other woman. “Do you mind if we can let her sleep?” </p>
<p>He gestured out in front of him, urging Nicole to go in front of him. As she took another stride, the world around her transformed. No longer was she standing feet away from Waverly, instead, she was back at the start. Just feet away from her stood Julian and Juan Carlo’s throne, and what she could only assume was the exit to Purgatory.</p>
<p>“Where are we?” Nicole stuttered, her face paling as she realized she could no longer see Waverly. </p>
<p>“She’s right there,” Julian said, pointing behind her as if reading her mind. And sure enough, Nicole’s eyes met the slumbering woman as if she was watching her through a television. </p>
<p>“Sorry to wake you,” He sighed as the redhead set her palms on her knees to catch her breath. Why was she so out of shape? The blood rushed to her face as embarrassment crept up her neck. </p>
<p>His image made it impossible for her to comprehend that he was the father of the woman she just had sex with. That he most definitely caught her having sex with. Waverly was an adult and could have sex with anyone she wanted. Who cares if she was his daughter? “What can I do for you, sir?”</p>
<p>“You’ve never called me sir before,” He grinned, his pearly whites reflecting in the warm summer sun. “You need not start just because you are sleeping with my daughter.”</p>
<p>“Uh,” She stuttered from his bluntness. “Sorry.”</p>
<p>“I finally received word from the counsel regarding your request,” He used his cement post as a brace, facing him to stand tall. His age shimmered for the first time since they met. “They’ve decided.”</p>
<p>“And?” She curled the bottom of her lip into her mouth and bit on the tender flesh. “What did they say?”</p>
<p>“Normally, they would not allow someone who does not have angel blood to take an angel’s post.”</p>
<p>“But?” </p>
<p>“When I restored your life at the homestead, some of my magic transferred into your body, enough to say that you have trace amounts of angel blood running through your veins right now.”</p>
<p>“So,” She reflected on his news as her exhausted limbs shook with anxiety. “I can do it? I can become the guardian and open the gates?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” He nodded, though shadows hid in his eyes as something burned inside him. “You can.”</p>
<p>“But you don’t think I can do it,” She said as she analyzed the disappointment tearing him apart. “That’s not what I said,”  He shrugged his shoulders and shoved his soft, creaming hands into his pockets. “And I can’t tell you what to do, Nicole.” </p>
<p>“But you don’t think I should?”</p>
<p>“That woman over there,” He nodded his head toward his slumbering daughter, a look of admiration flashing over his features. “She loves you. How do you think she will survive if she never gets to see you again?”</p>
<p>“She has Champ,” she shrugged, her eyes wild from their lack of focus. </p>
<p>“But she loves you.” Julian rested his warm hand on her shoulder, trying to transfer his confidence to her.</p>
<p>“From firefighter to sheriff,” Nicole started as she squatted down in front of the throne, tracing the details etched into the cement with her trembling fingertips. “What is your advice?”</p>
<p>“I don’t know, Nicole,” He admitted, releasing a tired, heavy breath from his lungs. “I couldn’t do that it for anyone.”</p>
<p>“But it’s not just anyone,” The redhead punched the cracked cement as it called for her. “It’s for Waverly. Would you do it for Michelle?”</p>
<p>“That’s not fair,” Julian argued. “We both know the answer to that. You need to talk to Waverly before you decide.”</p>
<p>A frustrated hand tangled through greasy red hair. “I can’t tell her, you know that. She won’t let me sacrifice my life for hers, even if it is the right decision.”</p>
<p>“Tell her,” He commanded. “It will destroy her if you don’t. Either way, this will destroy her.”</p>
<p>“I need to make sure she is safe,” Nicole repeated. “She needs to be home with her family. She can’t stay here for the rest of her life.”</p>
<p>“Have you ever thought that maybe she considers you a part of her family? Someone she can’t live without?” He leaned against a large oak, the bark scratching his inhuman skin. “When you imagine her life in Purgatory without you, do you picture her happy? How can she be happy when you just promised you would be a significant part of that baby’s life?”</p>
<p>Nicole’s neck snapped toward the man as the words tumbled from his lips. “How did you know that?”</p>
<p>“The trees have ears, Nicole. You should know that by now.” He smiled. “Just give it a few days, okay? You are succeeding in ways no one else has. Think about it and talk to her!”</p>
<p>“What?” The sheriff questioned the angel, but before the words could hit his mind, he blew away like a gentle breeze, sensing yet another presence interrupting their conversation. As she turned to return to Waverly, a beautiful sound filled her ears. Step by step she moved closer to the post, trapped by the siren’s magnetic pull. </p>
<p>“Nicole?” Waverly bellowed from behind, the sound thrusting the redhead from her trance. Her hair was tossed from sleep, and Nicole’s uniformed shirt hung at her thighs, an obvious sign she had dressed in a hurry. “What are you doing?”</p>
<p>“Just looking,” She shrugged, knocking her knuckles on the cement post. Her knuckles immediately burned and cuts appeared across her palm. She shoved her hand in her pocket, desperate to hide it from the other woman.</p>
<p>“Okay,” She closed the small amount of space between the other woman, resting her hand on the small of her back. “That better be all you’re doing.”</p>
<p>“Waves-”</p>
<p>“Please don’t do this Nicole.” Waverly commanded.</p>
<p>“Don’t do what?” The redhead quizzed, as if she lost the command in translation.  </p>
<p>“Don’t sacrifice yourself so I can get out of here,” She snapped at the other woman as she laid her cards out on the table. </p>
<p>“I just-” </p>
<p>The brunette reached out, gliding her pad of her thumb against the redhead’s cheek, the feeling warming Nicole with love and affection. “Did last night mean anything to you?”</p>
<p>“It meant everything,” She admitted. Her focus got lost in the distance, becoming interested in a leaf blowing at the height of Waverly’s shoulder. “But-”</p>
<p>“Nic,” She tried one last time. “My entire life, everyone I loved packed up and left me alone.  People who claimed they loved me too. Please don’t leave me, Nicole. Please be the one to break the cycle.”</p>
<p>“What if it’s the only choice?” Nicole’s pupils were misty, tears threatening to take the leap. </p>
<p>Waverly pushed Nicole’s face, forcing her to look into her eyes. “Then I want to stay.”</p>
<p>“But Waves,” She challenged. “You can’t. You have a child.”</p>
<p>“What if we raise the child here?” She asked. “It would quieter than Purgatory. And we could teach the child ourselves. Between the two of us, it would be the smartest child in the universe.”</p>
<p>“Waves-”</p>
<p>“Look, all I’m saying is we can figure it out together, okay?” She said. “This isn’t the only option.”</p>
<p>“I guess so,” Nicole shrugged. Taking one last look at the thrones, she spun around, her body colliding into a vigorous man adorning a dirty, well-worn cowboy hat. Leaves scattered all over the ground.</p>
<p>“Anybody got a light?” </p>
<p>“Let me guess,” Waverly asked without looking back as leaves took flight. “Doc?”</p>
<p>“Doc Holliday at your service.” </p>
<p>“At our service,” Nicole laughed as the branches above them swayed above them like a telephone pole dancing in the middle of a hurricane. “You are a greedy… selfish little-”</p>
<p>“I am so done with these little hallucinations or whatever they are,” The young woman rolled her eyes as she continued, refusing to look at the fake man. “What do you want Doc?”</p>
<p>“Hallucinations,” He took off his hat and held it in his palm. The boughs of the trees creaked eerily. “I do not understand what you are talking about.”</p>
<p>“You’re fake, Doc.” Waverly spit, tugging the bottom of her shirt to hide her exposed thighs. </p>
<p>“The real you is probably still a vampire,” Nicole said. “And the last thing I knew, you killed Charlie.”</p>
<p>“I put him back!” Doc argued as the leaves fled in terror. “And I would like you to know I am as real as the heartbeat inside my chest.”</p>
<p>“I notice that you didn’t say as alive as the blood running through your veins.” Nicole noticed the uncomfortable look on Waverly’s face and moved in front of the younger girl, sheltering her from his weary eyes.</p>
<p>“So, I ask again,” Waverly wrapped her arms around her chest in frustration. “What do you want?”</p>
<p>“I can never get past you, Ms. Waverly Earp,” He shoved the cowboy hat back on his head, hiding his greasy hair. </p>
<p>“We know better,” Nicole crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Continue.”</p>
<p>“I have a proposition in which we both are in dire need,” He said. The wind sounded a mighty roar, making everything surrounding them shake in fear. “I need your help to escape this hellhole.”</p>
<p>“Aren’t we all,” The redhead muttered, receiving an eye roll from the woman.</p>
<p>“And how do you suggest we open the gate?” Waverly asked.</p>
<p>“Well, I have seen this done before.” He admitted, his eyes drifting to a faraway place. Gusts of cold air coiled around the two women’s feet. “I heard both of you have the power to stand guard at the gate.”</p>
<p>“We don’t know that yet,” Waverly spoke as she glanced at Nicole. </p>
<p>“Okay then,” Doc scratched his bushy moustache in confusion. “If we coordinate this right, all three of us can exit without getting injured.”</p>
<p>“How?” Nicole asked, disbelief rattling her brain but hope shaking her heart. </p>
<p>“If one of you were to stand at the post, two of us can exit.”</p>
<p>“And the third gets stuck in here,” Waverly huffed. “Nicole, do you think we can search for something to eat today? Maybe we can find some coconuts. I’m getting hungry.”</p>
<p>“No,” Doc argued. “We can get out together. When the person steps away from the post, the gate will close. If it we time it correctly, they can slip through the gates.”</p>
<p>“Aren’t those who guard paradise stuck here forever?” Nicole asked. </p>
<p>“How did Juan Carlo get out?” Doc removed his hat, his eyes staring into the two women. His hair whipped wildly in front of his eyes. “And Julian? Both escaped with ease.”</p>
<p>“Only because something outside called them,” Waverly said.</p>
<p>“Look, if it doesn’t work, one of you two can just reopen the gate and we can return together.”</p>
<p>“Why should we trust you?” Nicole asked.</p>
<p>“Because Nicole, Waverly,” Tears formed in his eyes as a loud crack resounded throughout the forest.  “I have an almost two-year-old daughter at home. I want to see her grow. I want to be part of her life, because my father was not part of mine. I need her. I need Alice. She’s the reason I live and breathe right now.”</p>
<p>“Two?” Waverly muttered. How could Doc not even remember his own daughter’s age?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Why are we here so early!” Wynonna whined from the back seat. “It’s only like 7 in the morning! Black Rock doesn’t allow visitors for at least another two hours!”</p>
<p>“Well, some people were drunk then,” Robin explained. “I thought this trip was going to take longer.”</p>
<p>“It’s all your fault, Jeremy,” She cursed toward the man in the front seat, clenching his eyes shut as he tried to doze. “I could have been home sleeping in my nice warm bed.”</p>
<p>“You hadn’t been home in over 24 hours,” Jeremy snapped back, refusing to open his lids. “Why would you have started last night?”</p>
<p>“Guys, guys,” Robin called as he tried to control the two. “Be quiet.”</p>
<p>Wynonna dug a bottle of whiskey from between the seats and took a long swig. “I do not have enough whiskey to handle you this early.”</p>
<p>Grunting, Robin reached behind and snatched the liquor from Wynonna’s fingertips. “You cannot be drinking in the parking lot of a prison!”</p>
<p>“Says who?” She snorted, leaning forward to steal her whiskey, but to no avail. </p>
<p>“Where did you even get that?” He asked, shaking his head. “You know what, it doesn’t matter. Let’s discuss the plan again.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hang on tight! Answers are coming (I think. No they are, I promise).</p>
<p>Thanks for reading! Please give me a shout below on your thoughts! And find me on Twitter @FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Label Me Greedy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Is anybody out there on a Monday?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 15</p>
<p>Nicole stirred, “But what’s in it for you, Doc?”</p>
<p>“Waverly,” He ignored the heartless redhead, focusing his attention on the tiny brunette. The sound of a loud gust ripped through Waverly’s ears until finally finishing with a loud thud. “One day you will know how it feels to have your child waking up without you, crying for you every day.”</p>
<p>“No, she won’t,” Nicole crossed her arms in front of her chest and took another step toward Doc, sheltering Waverly even more. “What’s in it for you, Doc? I know you, and you only do things for yourself. And this is for your daughter.”</p>
<p>“I do not understand what you mean,” He ran his fingertips through his scruff. The bright, metallic ring on his hand caught the light of the sun and burned into Nicole’s eyes.</p>
<p>“You made a deal with the devil, Doc, didn’t you?” The redhead spit. </p>
<p>“I am certain I do not know what you are talking about.” He smirked, his eyes lighting up as he watched the brunette wrap her arms across her chest to shelter her from the turbine.</p>
<p>“You have your ring back, Doc!” Nicole said. “So, even if you were the real Doc, how could we trust you knowing you made a deal with the devil? If we let you leave, you will be immortal. Stuck in here, you are a mouse in a cage.”</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Doc pleaded. Nicole glanced at the trees above her head, watching as dozens more leaves tumbled to the ground. He continued, “You remember how it feels to grow up without your mother and father. Do you want Alice to feel that pain? Do you want her to know loneliness, when every person in her life leaves just like your family? She will think no one loves her, just like you did. And who knows, maybe you were right.”</p>
<p>Dark red lightening flashed inside of the cowboy’s eyes. “They never loved you, Waverly, and they won’t ever again. They will blame you for tearing their family apart yet again. Let me out!”</p>
<p>“Hey,” Nicole said, shoving the man with anger spewing from her mouth. “Don’t talk to her like that.”</p>
<p>“Nicole Haught thinks she can stop me?” He said as the wind lashed against the brunette’s face like a whip from a leather belt. “Then tell Waverly the truth! That you are afraid to depend on anyone else but yourself. Ever since Shae dumped your ass, you are afraid of trusting anyone else. I am not sure you trust anyone but her.”</p>
<p>“Try again, asshole,” She pushed him a small bit harder, his feet sinking into the water-logged dirt. “She knows that.”</p>
<p>“Then does she know why you met with her father today?” He smirked, his smile bringing along yet another violent blast of wind. “That you have every intention of taking her place now that you know you can.”</p>
<p>“Nicole-”</p>
<p>“Oh, I’m sorry Waverly, was that something you did not know?” He snickered, feeling as though he was gaining the upper hand. “Daddy dropped by this morning and told Nicole that because he saved her life, she has enough angel magic pumping through her veins that she can take the position and save your life.”</p>
<p>“She wouldn’t.”</p>
<p>“That’s what you think,” He said. “She’s thought about it, she’s still thinking about it now. Take my offer, Nicole; it gives you a chance to have a family.”</p>
<p>“Nicole-”</p>
<p>“I think it sounds like a plan, don’t you, Sheriff?” Doc said. Nicole’s eyes glanced from the cowboy to the weak branch swaying above their heads. “Waverly and the child get out safely, you have a chance to return to Purgatory, and I get to be immortal. It’s a win-win-win.”</p>
<p>“Doc,” Nicole spoke. “Aren’t you supposed to be good at poker?”</p>
<p>“Supposed to be,” Doc snickered as he lit yet another smoke. “Oh honey, I am good.”</p>
<p>“Then you should know when to fold,” Nicole reached forward and wrapped her hands around the man’s throat. </p>
<p>“It’s my decision to make, and your greedy ass will not use me to become immortal. And I for one am not greedy. I will do whatever this woman wants me to, and we decide, together.”</p>
<p>“Wait, Nicole,” Waverly called as the plates shifted in her brain. The redhead glanced at Waverly before dropping the red-faced, oxygen-less cowboy. He clawed at his throat, gasping for air.</p>
<p>“We are a team,” Nicole coughed, wiping her dirty hands on her sleeves. “So if she tells me to stop, I stop.”</p>
<p>“Doc,” The brunette started as the redhead leaned against her. “We will make a deal with you. You can stay with us until we figure out how to escape. Then we can all leave together, your immortality and all.”</p>
<p>“Waverly,” Nicole hesitated.</p>
<p>“I think we have whiskey left, too. Right, Nicole?”</p>
<p>The redhead’s eyes locked with the brunettes, as she pleaded for her to follow along. “Yeah, we do. Do you want some?”</p>
<p>“Really?” Doc said, his face softening. </p>
<p>“You are being nice to me? You want to help me?”</p>
<p>“That’s what families do, right?” Waverly continued. “Be selfless.”</p>
<p>“I didn’t-” Doc paused as he once again clawed at his neck as oxygen escaped. Without another word, he fell to the ground like a light stack of feathery pillows. </p>
<p>Four bubbles erupted from the dirt as the world swallowed him whole as a final hurricane force wind slashed through the forest. The tree’s arm snapped and plummeted to the ground. Without a second of hesitation, Nicole tugged Waverly away from its landing pad. Nicole’s back collided with the hard ground, followed by the brunette’s back pounding into her stomach.</p>
<p>“Well that was close,” Waverly spun off the officer’s chest. “You’re still not doing it!”</p>
<p>While Waverly got to her feet, the redhead held her hands out in front of her chest, surrendering to the younger woman. “I know, I know.”</p>
<p>“Uh, Nicole?” Waverly asked, her arms searching for the invisible portal back to where they had just slept. “I think we’re back at the beginning.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Can I have you three sign in?” The security guard commanded as he passed a visitor’s log and a pen over to Wynonna. “Can I have your identification?”</p>
<p>“Absolutely,” Wynonna agreed. She unsnapped the fake identification card from her leather belt loop and passed it to the man. Behind her, Robin and Jeremy copied her motions and dropping their ID cards onto the desk. </p>
<p>“Let me just take a copy of these,” Without uttering another word, the guard disappeared into the backroom, leaving the trio to pass the log from one to the next.</p>
<p>“What’s my name again?” Jeremy whispered to his boyfriend as the cool plastic pen slipped between his fingers. </p>
<p>“Joseph,” Robin whispered, his eyes never once glancing at the other man. </p>
<p>“Joseph? How am I supposed to remember that name?” Jeremy asked rhetorically.</p>
<p>“It’s your middle name!” Wynonna harassed the younger man.</p>
<p>“Is the prisoner expecting your arrival?” The guard asked as he returned each of the visitor’s IDs. </p>
<p>“I do not believe so,” Robin stated as he attached the plastic card to his belt loop. </p>
<p>“As his new lawyer,” Wynonna began, “I worked tirelessly to get a plea deal from the district attorney.”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Jeremy smirked, his anxious rambling building within. “We were hoping-”</p>
<p>“That he would accept the deal,” Robin cut the shorter man off. “And help the government return two missing hostages to their families.”</p>
<p>“Really?” He laughed. “Good luck with that one.”</p>
<p>“Thanks,” Wynonna said as her eyes ping pong-ed around the room. “I think we might need it.”</p>
<p>“I know you will,” He chuckled, then pointed behind the small group. “Put all your belongings in those lockers, then you have to pass security before we call the prisoner.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“So, Doc,” Nicole said as she tossed a coconut from the ground and into Waverly’s waiting hands. “And now it’s like someone just hit the reset button on our journey. At least they were nice enough to trap our clothes and my backpack here with us.” </p>
<p>“Doc freakin’ Holliday was working against us again” Waverly said.</p>
<p>Nicole sat onto the ground beside the younger girl. The redhead’s long, icy fingertips found her heated infection. The cold skin from her digits immediately brought relief to the pain. </p>
<p>The smaller woman continued her tirade against the cowboy as Nicole lay her head in Waverly’s lap. “Greedy little shit ticket would have done anything to escape with his immortality. It wasn’t him, it was almost like it was.”</p>
<p>“It was like they took everything out of him except for the sin. He was nothing but greedy.”</p>
<p>“Wait,” Waverly said as her hand in the other woman’s hair stilled. “What did you just say?”</p>
<p>“That he was greedy?” The redhead did the best to shrug her shoulders against the ground. “Sorry, it’s the truth.”</p>
<p>“You don’t remember much about the bible, right?”</p>
<p>“No,” Nicole said, her eyes drowning into the flames. “Too much nicotine for my teenage brain.”</p>
<p>“Have you heard the seven deadly sins?”</p>
<p>“You mean like the villains from like every single superhero saga?” Nicole shot out of Waverly’s lap and looked into her confused eyes. “What, I like comic books!”</p>
<p>“You are adorable,” Waverly lay a light kiss on her nose. “But can you stop being so cute so I can explain this?”</p>
<p>“Yes, sorry,” The redhead folded her hands. “Okay, so we have Doc being greedy and only caring about his immortality?”</p>
<p>“Champ was acting affectionate, I guess?” She said. “He was the definition of lust. He was trying to tell me we belonged together because he was handsome and popular, and I was beautiful.”</p>
<p>Nicole shuddered. “Sorry, Champ is someone I’m trying to forget.”</p>
<p>“You’ve got nothing to worry about,” The youngest Earp squeezed her hand.</p>
<p>“Ward was trying to get you to steal alcohol for him, right?”</p>
<p>“Exactly, so he was gluttony.” Waverly grabbed the knife from Nicole’s side and fidgeted with it between her fingers. “And Willa wanted revenge because I destroyed our family and stole Wynonna from her.”</p>
<p>“Which you did no such thing.” Nicole held out four fingers as they counted off the list of sins. “Then Champ again? Is Champ allowed to portray two sins?”</p>
<p>“I mean, I guess so,” She said. “Champ’s personality fits each of the seven deadly sins.”</p>
<p>Nicole chuckled and held up her two hands. “You said it, not me.” </p>
<p>“And then we have the widows.” Waverly scratched her head.</p>
<p>“And envy and sloth left.” Nicole held up her five fingers.</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t say they were envious, so I guess sloth?” Waverly punched her knees in excitement. “They were trying to use me to get the gate open. And the sin of sloth is to have someone else do your dirty work. That fits them to a tee.”</p>
<p>“So, we have envy left.”</p>
<p>“Do you think if we defeat all the sins the gate will open?” Waverly asked, hope sprinkled across her eyes. “What did Julian- uh, my dad, say? That we are here to cleanse our souls?”</p>
<p>“So you’re thinking each one of them are here to cleanse our souls of the sins they are portraying.”</p>
<p>“Yes, exactly,” Waverly chuckled. “And to defeat each of the sins we need to portray the opposite of the sin itself, like I did with Doc. Instead of being greedy, I was selfless. And in essence, we cleansed our soul of greed.”</p>
<p>“So, what happens if we defeat the seven sins? Will we get the choice between the Garden of Eden or Purgatory?”</p>
<p>“I mean it makes sense?” The brunette shrugged. “My father said it wasn’t about the destination, but the journey. We have only focused on the destination.”</p>
<p>“That makes so much sense!”  She pulled the other woman into her arms and planted an excited kiss on her lips. “Waverly, you are a genius!”</p>
<p>“Uh, thanks I guess.” An embarrassed smile crossed the other woman’s face.</p>
<p>“The only question now is who do we consider envious?”</p>
<p>“It’s Wynonna,” Waverly admitted. “She has to be envy.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Do you get my chapter titles now? Or did you get them right off the bat?</p>
<p>As always, thanks for reading! Drop a comment or leave kudos below!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. How Many Sins? I'm Running Out</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 16</p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole moaned, her entire body shivering from the blistering cold. It had been long, too long since they had seen Purgatory. She felt frigid, colder than she ever had in her life. She tugged on the blanket, but once she felt tension from Waverly, she let it slip from her hands. </p>
<p>Shudders ran across her spine, her body feeling as if it was a massage chair. Her lids peeled open as her pupils danced across the early dawn morning. She felt as though the dew coated her as wind whistled around her. It felt as if ice covered her face. With hesitancy, she raised her palm to her forehead, but it didn’t feel cold, instead it felt as if she was on fire. She peered over at the slumbering Waverly, an inner turmoil raging inside of her. Was this serious enough to wake her?</p>
<p>As pain shot through her abdomen, she knew she didn’t have a choice. With shaky fingertips, she brushed her icy digits against the woman’s warm cheek. “Waverly,” she ejected, her weak voice louder than prior. “Please, Waves; something’s wrong.”</p>
<p>The redhead threw the blanket off, clawing as her throat as if flames flared inside. Water, she needed water.</p>
<p>“Nicole?” Waverly blinked as a sudden breeze wafted against her once sleep-warmed body. “Are you okay?”</p>
<p>“No,” Nicole clutched her side as she towered above the brunette She wanted to lie. If she lied, Waverly wouldn’t’t worry. But as the pain doubled and tripled, it became impossible for her to lie to Waverly.  “I think its infected.”</p>
<p>The woman rubbed her eyes as she tried to wake her mind. “What’s infected?”</p>
<p>“My cut, my wound. The one that Julian- your father used magic to heal. I think it’s infected. I think its been infected.”</p>
<p>“What are you doing standing?” Waverly’s mind shattered through her sleep induced haze as she pieced together the present. “Lay back.”</p>
<p>“I need water.”</p>
<p>“No,” The younger woman stood before the redhead and shoved her toward the ground. “Lay down and take off your shirt.”</p>
<p>“Feisty,” Nicole chuckled through the pain. She snatched the bottom of her shirt and flung it over her head.</p>
<p>“Sit,” She shoved the redhead yet again, her voice becoming more forceful. Once the taller woman obeyed, she dug through the backpack.  “When did you first feel like this?”</p>
<p>“I just started feeling the fever.” Nicole’s bottom lip quivered and her voice stuttered. She lay on her back, exposing the bright yellow infection to the air. “I think it’s been infected for a few days. I didn’t want to worry you.”</p>
<p>“Nicole, you stupid,” Waverly straddled the other woman’s legs to get a closer look at the infection. She set a gentle kiss on her burning forehead. “You need to tell me these things; we are a team. When will you get that through your stubborn head?”</p>
<p>“Well, if you keep kissing me, sooner than one would expect.” Nicole gasped as the brunette wiped cold cream across her smoldering abdomen. </p>
<p>“Even delirious, you are a charmer.” Waverly smirked as she dropped the first aid cream into the backpack. She wrapped the blanket around Nicole before turning toward the water.</p>
<p>“Hey, I’m not delirious.” Nicole yelled toward the other woman. She squinted toward Waverly, watching as she waded in the shallow depth of the river. As Waverly filled up one of the coconut shells, Nicole muttered: “Yet.”</p>
<p>“Alright, here, take this,” The youngest Earp held out the overflowing coconut.</p>
<p>“But you just wrapped me up so nice and tight.” The redhead whined.</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes, “I’ll do it again. You need to drink, Nic.”</p>
<p>“I know,” she slid her arms out from underneath the blanket and snatched the shell with her trembling fingertips. Waverly wiped the dirt from the filter straw onto her shirt before tucking it into the coconut. “Drink.”</p>
<p>“It’s so cold,” Nicole whined. She fought through the pain and swallowed several gulps of water. Beside her, Waverly struggled to open two tablets of medication. </p>
<p>“Here, take this,” she said. She popped two pills from their plastic and into the redhead’s palms.</p>
<p>“But it will make me so sleepy!” Nicole complained.</p>
<p>“You need it, sweetie,” She encouraged. The redhead dropped both pills into her mouth and swallowed them with a sip of water. “Are you always this unruly when you are sick?”</p>
<p>“Yup,” Nicole answered with a pop. She swayed back and forth on the ground as her eyes drooped shut.</p>
<p>“Drink more, please,” Waverly moved in front of her, holding the straw just below her mouth. </p>
<p>“But it’s cold!” Nicole complained. “Well, I guess I should be happy you aren’t putting the ice pack on my head.”</p>
<p>“That’s a great idea!” Waverly smiled. </p>
<p>“I shouldn’t have opened my mouth.”</p>
<p>“I won’t make you do it yet,” She said. “For now, just drink.”</p>
<p>“Ah, just for you,” She sighed, slipping the straw into her mouth.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Stop acting like your carrying a pound of coke,” Robin snorted at the older woman. Both Wynonna and Jeremy looked suspicious; one looked ghost white while the other bounced in her chair.</p>
<p>“Sorry,” Wynonna muttered under her breath. “I’m just not used to being in jail for someone other than myself.”</p>
<p>“Or the mother you hid from Waverly,” Jeremy replied as daggers shot from Wynonna’s eyes. “Sorry, sorry.”</p>
<p>“What’s your issue?” The eldest Earp spit back.</p>
<p>“I’ve never been to prison before,” Jeremy admitted.</p>
<p>“Wow,” Wynonna said sarcastically. “I expected you to have had a five-year sentence! You too, Robin?”</p>
<p>“Number 552!”  The security guard called. The small group looked around at the other visitors while Robin pinpointed their ticket. </p>
<p>“Oh, that’s us!” Robin said excitedly, as if he had just won the lottery. </p>
<p>“Yup, we fit right in,” Wynonna rolled her eyes.  She followed the two young men through the glass doors, her eyes locking with blinking lights and intimidating security guards.</p>
<p>“Please remove your jackets and shoes. If you have laces on your shoes, we will remove them for you, and we will return them to you after your visit at the front desk.”</p>
<p>“This is exciting!” Jeremy said as he slipped his converse into a plastic tray. “It’s like I’m going on vacation!”</p>
<p>“Well, trust me,” Wynonna said as she slid her tray onto the conveyor belt. “It’s not Mickey Mouse you are going to meet.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Waverly ran her hand through greasy red tendrils as a slight snore escaped the other woman’s barely open mouth. She felt as though she had been awake for hours, watching Nicole sleep. She listened to her heartbeat, each drum relieving an insurmountable pressure from her shoulders. She would die if something happened to her, never mind if it happened on her watch. Why hadn’t she told her sooner?</p>
<p>Her body eventually stopped trembling, but Waverly was uncertain that her fever broke. She wanted to wake her; she needed to hear her beautiful voice. But Nicole needed the sleep. The younger woman closed her own eyes, the sound of the redhead’s soft breathing filling her soul and lulling her to sleep.</p>
<p>“Waverly, right?” A rough, nervous voice asked as she felt herself drift into dream world. “Sorry to bother you.”</p>
<p>“No, no,” Waverly’s pupils readjusted to the new afternoon sun. As she sat up, her vision locked onto the elderly man resting against the tree beside them.</p>
<p>“Is this where you have been staying?” He asked, glancing around the space. </p>
<p>“We’ve been staying wherever the wind takes us, and at first it was to you.” Waverly rolled her eyes and released a frustrated breath. She didn’t have time for someone else’s disappointment. She led the man a short distance away from the slumbering woman, but close enough where she could watch her. “What can I do for you, sir?”</p>
<p>He bit his bottom lip; a nerve Waverly recognized as one of her own. “I came to apologize, Waverly-”</p>
<p>“Apology accepted,” She replied as her focus shifted away from the man. </p>
<p>“Waverly, you need to understand,” He tried again.  “Time works differently in this place. I don’t have a clue how its been since I arrived. Has it been weeks or years? I really don’t know. So, when you told me you were my granddaughter, I didn’t believe you. How could I have a granddaughter your age, when I’m not even sure when Julian left? Why would he choose a life on earth? It was his birthright to protect the garden.”</p>
<p>“I’m not sure how many of those questions I can answer, sir.”</p>
<p>“Please, call me Gordon.”</p>
<p>“Gordon, got it,” Waverly said. “Julian never planned to stay in Purgatory. He planned to return. But my father, well, the man I thought was my father, pushed him out of the Ghost River Triangle. He lost his memories, and they didn’t return until a just before Nicole and I arrived. I don’t think he knew you were waiting for him. Just like he didn’t remember my mother, the love of his life.”</p>
<p>“You don’t think he left me on purpose?”</p>
<p>“No, sir- Gordon, I don’t.” She slipped her hands into her pocket, guarding herself from this awkward conversation. “Look, I’m sorry we bothered you. Nicole and I  didn’t think about your feelings. Julian urged us to find you, so we did. He wanted me to meet my grandfather.”</p>
<p>“I took some time to think about it, Waverly,” His eyes flickered between the two women. “I want to do it. I’ve lived my life, and it’s time for you to live yours. I’ll take my son’s place and open the gate.”</p>
<p>“No, it’s not- you can’t,” Waverly’s eyes drooped in hesitation. She peered toward Nicole; would she stand behind her decision? “You already spent decades here. I can’t ask you to sacrifice your life for ours.” </p>
<p>His eyes followed Waverly’s to the slumbering redhead. “Is she hurt?” </p>
<p>“Yes,” She stepped toward the slumbering Nicole, with Gordon hot on her heels. “She has an infection. Do you know any first aid?”</p>
<p>“I know a bit,” He responded. “It’s been trial and error. Has she had a fever?”</p>
<p>“She has,” Waverly said, leading him over to Nicole’s side. “But I think it might have subsided.”</p>
<p>“May I?” He gestured toward the redhead.</p>
<p>“Yeah, go ahead.”</p>
<p>He held the back of his hand to the woman’s forehead, glanced toward the sky, and muttered under his breath as if he was speaking to someone. “She still has a fever. Did she have chills?”</p>
<p>“She was shivering and complaining she was freezing, but she’s not complaining now.”</p>
<p>“It’s probably best to take the blanket off her then. To help break the fever.”</p>
<p>“Okay,” Waverly looked solemn as she snatched the blanket away from the other woman. Nicole stirred, desperately trying to find her heat source. “We have an icepack. Should I have used that?”</p>
<p>“Crack it open and put it on her forehead.” He commanded. “Her chills might return, but it will help regulate her temperature.”</p>
<p>“Okay,” She grabbed the ice pack from the first aid kit and squeezed it until it popped. She sat by Nicole’s side as she put the ice pack on her forehead. The redhead reached up, trying to destroy the cold object attached to her. “No, sweetie, we’ve got to leave that on.”</p>
<p>“Waves,” Nicole’s eyelids trembled open and shut.</p>
<p>“I’m right here, Nicole,” She squeezed her hand with her own free one. “I’m not going anywhere.”</p>
<p>“Waves, you got to-”</p>
<p>“Nicole, sleep, please,” Waverly pleaded. “I need you to get better.”</p>
<p>“You need to call envy, Waves,” Nicole sputtered. She took a deep breath as if she tried to find the strength to speak. “You need to be envious.”</p>
<p>“Not now, Nicole,” She sniffled, desperate to stop the warm tears from escaping her watery eyes. “I need to stay here with you.”</p>
<p>“I don’t know if I’ll make it, if you don’t,” The redhead admitted.</p>
<p>“I don’t want to leave you here.”</p>
<p>“You have to. I love you, Waves,” Nicole told her. Her eyes twitched closed for one last time. </p>
<p>“I love you too, Nicole,” Tears streamed down Waverly’s face and created a small pool beside her leg. </p>
<p>“Gordon,” She called, not taking her eyes off Nicole. “Can you hold this, please?”</p>
<p>“Absolutely,” He sat down on the opposite side of the redhead. Their fingertips brushed as he placed his own hand beside hers on the cold pack. “You love her, don’t you?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, I do,” Waverly lay a soft kiss on the other woman’s knuckles. “Is that a problem?”</p>
<p>“Not at all,” He smiled. “Whatever makes you happy. Now what did she mean, saying you have to call envy?”</p>
<p>“We think the counsel is sending people from my past to portray the seven deadly sins and cleanse us of our own sins. And, this is just a theory, but we think that if we become cleansed of all the seven deadly sins, the council will let us decide between staying here or going back home.”</p>
<p>“How many do you have left?” </p>
<p>“Just one,” Waverly said. “Just envy. Which is why-”</p>
<p>“You need me to stay here with your girl,” He smiled. “Go. I can handle this.”</p>
<p>Nodding, she stood tall as insecurity and worry plagued her mind. She galloped through the woods in the entrance's direction; she had to be far enough away that Wynonna couldn’t hurt Nicole, or even her grandfather. Cold inflated her lungs as she paced back and forth.<br/> </p>
<p>“I hate the fact that you are the heir, Wynonna,” Her voice echoed through the wooded forest, disturbing the sleeping wildlife. “It should have been me. I’ve studied ancient languages and researched the history of Purgatory all because I thought I would have a chance. But guess what? It’s not me, I’m not the heir. I’m not even a goddamn Earp. You are. You’ve had everything I’ve ever wanted.”</p>
<p>Waverly felt the anger simmering inside her, like a pot ready to explode. The sound of clapping caused tidal waves through her body. She turned toward the sound, her mind excited to lay her eyes on her sister for the first time in months.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. I'm the Cause of a Lot of Envy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I don't think anyone noticed I was missing right?</p><p>My sisters wedding is done check! So now I can breathe again!</p><p>So I had debated between having this story be separated into two separate stories, this one, and a sequel. After debating for a long while, I decided just to combine it into one (because the sequel would have been short enough to just add on. I guess I could have called it a novella? A ficlet? Either way, while writing, I decided to combine it. So anyways, what I'm trying to say, is that this chapter would have been the ending of the original fic, and all chapters after would be the sequel (I think you can tell there is an end of a story arc.)</p><p>Thanks for sticking around! Hope you enjoy this one!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 17</p><p>“Take a seat,” The guard commanded, nodding toward the table as the trio entered the sterile room. One by one, each took a seat around the small, white, round table. “He will be in momentarily. I can’t imagine what he is paying you to be his lawyer. It’s not even worth it. You know everything they have charged him with, right?”</p><p>“Yes,” Wynonna said, drumming her fingertips on the cafeteria like table.</p><p>As soon as the door behind them closed, the door in front opened wide. A second security guard entered the room, shoving a middle-aged man through the door beside him. Wynonna’s eyes bulged as she noticed the long chain winding around his body, dangling from the two metal rings wrapped around his neck to his ankles. Two manacles tied his hands together and a large padlock connected the two, ensuring he could neither raise his hands nor lower his head. He held his limbs out toward the guard.</p><p>“I don’t think so,” The man chuckled and shook his head in disbelief. “Take a seat, Del Rey. You have ten minutes.”</p><p>“Looks like they do things differently at Black Rock, huh, Mars?” The eldest Earp asked with a chuckle.</p><p>“When have you ever been here, Wynonna?” He leaned forward, his wild eyes bouncing around the room.</p><p>She smirked. “When I put your older brother in here, Mars.” </p><p>“In here? I thought you sent him to hell and back, twice! Stupid idiot couldn’t even escape a Black Badge Agent.” The younger Del Rey brother snorted. “I don’t know who’s stupider, him or the idiot security guard who thought Wynonna Earp was a lawyer.”</p><p>“How do you know who we are?” Jeremy asked.</p><p>“There're pictures of you plastered all over the jail. Everyone wants a piece of the Earp heir.”</p><p>“Ha, I’m not any longer, Mars.” Wynonna taunted. “The curse is over.”</p><p>“Yes, the curse is over, but we won’t forget what your family did.” An evil glint twinkled in his eye yet again, one that Wynonna had seen one too many times in Robert. “What can I do for you, girl? I’m missing my breakfast.”</p><p>Robin leaned forward, trying to prove the most likely immortal man did not scare him. “We have an offer for you.”</p><p>“You want to make a deal with the devil?” He leaned forward, as if challenging the small group.</p><p>“I would only make a deal to save my angel.” Wynonna spit. “Which is why we are here.”</p><p>“Oh, so you need me to help the light that lives in the shadow of her big sister.” He surmised.</p><p>“And who do you think you are?” Wynonna shouted back. “You’re the turd that lives under the shoe of his big brother!”</p><p>“Alright, alright, enough of that,” Robin said. “Wynonna, tell him how we can help him.”</p><p>“Fine, fine,” Wynonna snorted. “We want you to go open the garden and let my sister out.”</p><p>Del Rey chuckled. “You are kidding. What’s in it for me?”</p><p>“A life away from this disastrous place? We are offering you a life in the Garden of Eden.”</p><p>The older man snarled as he leaned forward even further. “So you want me to leave one prison and go to the next?”</p><p>“I mean, it’s better than being here to be.” Jeremy chided, his eyes locking with the youngest Svane. His face paled as he scooted back on his bench, looking away.</p><p>“I cannot open the garden.” He rejected. </p><p>“We aren’t stupid.” Wynonna repeated slowly. “Twenty percent of your DNA panels match Waverly. Which means-”</p><p>“You two are related.” The scientist smirked.</p><p>Mars snorted. “I don’t know what you think-”'</p><p>“The universe craves balance.” Jeremy reminded. “Jolene was Waverly’s and we think Julian was yours.”</p><p> </p><p>And then there was darkness.</p><p>“Me?” Waverly’s eyes squinted through the black. A voice sounding just like her own spoke. Waverly glanced down, but could not see her own two feet. “It’s me? I’m envy.”</p><p>Confusion furrowed across Waverly’s eyebrows as she squinted. The sound of a resounding clap pierced her ears as darkness suffocated her like a damp, musty blanket. </p><p>“I thought this would be hard,” She commented, smirking sinisterly. Waverly could not see the smirk, but she could hear it in her voice. Had she herself adorned that same smile? She was certain she hadn’t, yet maybe she had? “But you’re doing an outstanding job yourself. Pretend I’m not here, you can just destroy yourself.”</p><p>“Why me?” Waverly asked her shadow.</p><p>“You know, they said you were smart. That you were the only one with the power to beat us. But damn, they were wrong.” As the woman chuckled, goosebumps lined the brunette’s skin. She pressed her burning hot palm into Waverly’s stomach. “Have you not realized how much jealousy you are holding inside of you?”</p><p>“What? No, I’m not.” She retorted, blinking her eyes, hoping they would adjust to the blackness. Instead, the dark clung to every inch of her tanned skin. </p><p>“Come on Wave, I’m you. You can’t lie to me. You are the definition of envy.”</p><p>“No!”</p><p>“Fine, don’t admit it,” She chuckled with a look of satisfaction looming across her features. “But I know the truth and you know the truth.”</p><p>“How do I defeat you?” Waverly circled the shadow, as if she were a vulture circling her prey before the kill.</p><p>“You won’t get away from me that easily, Waverly.” The clone started. “You need me.”</p><p>“Yeah, right,” She sighed. Shee peered in what she guessed was the direction of Nicole for a millisecond, but the carbon copy caught her lack of focus. </p><p>“She’ll never love you; you know.”</p><p>“What?” The blood ran from Waverly’s face as she transformed to pale white.</p><p>“She will never love you as much as she loved that doctor.” The mirror image admitted. Her hand found Waverly’s shoulder, giving the other woman quite the fright. With every proceeding word, Waverly felt herself being shoved further away, but she could not stop it. “Did you see how tall and pretty she was? You are just a straight girl conquest. And now she will leave you just like she left her.”</p><p>“No,” The actual human shook her head in frustration as tears welled up in her eyes. “Nicole loves me.”</p><p>“Come on, Waverly! You are so dumb!” The woman laughed. “Do you remember when you were at the hospital and you couldn’t save her? Shae was her health care proxy, and I bet she still is. If you get out, you will be demoted yet. Nicole will die in a Purgatory hospital bed. And you? You will be nowhere to be found. Because guess what? You mean nothing to her! At least here, you can stay locked in your bisexual fantasy that she loves you!”</p><p>“Shut up,” Waverly cried. “I won’t listen to you. It’s not true.”</p><p>“But it is!” The clone screamed. “Now let’s discuss this curse.”</p><p>“The curse is over and done, it doesn’t matter.” Waverly spit as a paralyzing fear crept through her muscles. As her back hit the rough tree bark, she feels her muscles cramp and she can no longer move. </p><p>“It may be over, but it still bothers you, Waves.”</p><p>“Don’t call me that,” Waverly spewed, spit falling from her mouth. </p><p>“Why not, Waves? I’m you,” She tormented. “You wanted to be the heir. And you’re right, you should have been the heir. But you weren’t. And now Wynonna will be the hero of Purgatory. Because she, not you sent the revenants back to hell.”</p><p>“She deserves it,” Waverly blinked, her eyelids still moisturizing the organs she had no use for. Why hadn’t her pupils adjusted to the lack of light?</p><p>“Does she though?” The clone reached forward, tucking the fallen hair behind the real Waverly’s ear. “You were the brains behind her brawn. And let’s be honest, I’m not even sure she had any brawn. If you had that gun-”</p><p>“It doesn’t matter,” Waverly said, feeling like prey in this utter black. “The curse is over, broken. We can be happy.”</p><p>“Can you ever really be happy?” The mirrored image called. “Can you be happy watching your sister live your life?” </p><p>“She deserves it.”</p><p>“No, you deserve it. She has everything you want. Everything you ever wanted. She got your Dad’s love, you didn’t.”</p><p>“He wasn’t my father.” Waverly replied, squinting to find her clone, but unable. </p><p>“Oh, and he definitely treated you that way.” She smiled from her torment. “Not to mention how much Willa loved her. She hated you. Can you imagine how different your life would be if your parents loved you?”</p><p> “I’m not sure Ward loved anyone.”</p><p>“Well, if he did, it sure as hell wasn’t you.” </p><p>“Are you just going to pick at my insecurities?” The brunette asked. She fought as the surrounding darkness tried to squeeze the life out of her and consume her memories. </p><p>“It depends, is it working?”</p><p>“No,” Waverly lied. How could she get rid of her? How could she make her stop? “I’m stronger than you think.”</p><p>“But you’ll never be as strong as Wynonna, huh? Or as bold as Willa.” The Waverly look alike smiled. “What if I can get you everything you ever wanted?”</p><p>“You don’t know what I want.” She breathed, glancing into the starless sky. What could defeat envy?</p><p>“Waverly, Waverly, Waverly, how many times do I have to tell you? I’m you. I know exactly what you are thinking, before you even think it.”</p><p>“Alright,” The woman took a deep breath, hoping she wasn’t falling into a trap. She would not let the darkness destroy her. “What do you claim you can give me?”</p><p>“Freedom,” The woman smiled. “I know you want to get home. I can make sure you get there.”</p><p>“And what’s in it for you?”</p><p>“Not uh, uh, uh,” The other lady pressed her finger against Waverly’s lips. How could she see through the darkness? “That’s not all I can give you. I can give you your sister’s life. And you will be the famous Earp.”</p><p>“Shows how much you know, I’m not even an Earp.” Waverly chuckled. She squinted, her eyes finally connecting with the white’s in the other woman’s pupils. “And you still didn’t answer the question. What’s in it for you?”</p><p>“Freedom from the likes of you!” The shadow snickered. “The garden was quiet until you came and disturbed my peace! That redhead of yours is not quiet.”</p><p>Waverly smiled as a lightbulb flashed above her head. She would not be trapped in the darkness forever. “Look who’s jealous now?”</p><p>The woman laughed. “Jealous of you?”</p><p>“Jealous, you never had a lover so gentle.” Waverly smirked.</p><p>“Woman, you know nothing about me.”</p><p>“Ut uh, uh,” Waverly took a step forward, causing the mirrored image to take a step back. “We are going to leave, whether you help me. But you will be stuck in this place forever, while I get to be free.”</p><p>“I love living here.”</p><p>“Do you really?” Waverly charged forward. “Do you enjoy the counsel watching your every move? Do you like obeying their every command?”</p><p>Waverly bit her lip to stop the giggle bubbling within. “You are happy here? Is this what you call happy? I think you’re jealous. Jealous of me.”</p><p>“You’re insane.”</p><p>“No, I’m right,” Waverly said. “You want my life. You want to be me. You want to be free, but if I don’t help you, you will be stuck here forever.”</p><p>“No,” The woman spiraled. She placed her hand on her head; Waverly’s accusations stabbed her eardrums, and she felt as though she was bleeding. </p><p>The real Waverly shoved her clone one last time. “You’re a failure, and that’s all you ever are.”</p><p>The woman tripped over a tree root, and gravity took over, pushing her toward the ground. The clone braced herself for an impact, but before she collided with the solid ground, she vanished.</p><p>Waverly slid down the tree trunk as tears sprinkled on the ground beneath her. What if she was right?</p><p>“Look, we’re jut going to leave you here to think about this.” Wynonna said as she stood up from her seat.. Reaching underneath her waistband, she pulled a pair of wire cutters from the pocket hidden in her pants, and slid them across the floor. “If you want to take the deal, come and find us. It sounds like all the criminals in Black Rock are tracking us.”<br/>
</p><p>Del Rey snickered. “You got that right.”<br/>
</p><p>Quickly, Robin and Jeremy jumped up from their seats, not daring to look back. <br/>
</p><p>“Del Rey!” The security guard called, bursting through the door. “Time’s up!”<br/>
</p><p>Without a tremble of the metal chains, Del Rey slid the weapon into the bottom of his pants. Quickly he stood, his chains jingling against each other in the sudden movement.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>“Waverly!” The scream caused goosebumps throughout her form as her entire body went numb. Where was she again? “She’s convulsing!”</p><p>The brunette shook her head to break free of her frozen form. No longer hesitating, she followed the sound of Gordon’s screeching voice. Within seconds, she found herself by Nicole’s side. </p><p>“She was fine just a second ago,” He announced. “And then next thing I know, she’s doing this.”</p><p>“Waves,” The hesitant voice slipped from Nicole’s lips, her voice vibrating as her body rocked.</p><p>“I’m right here, sweetie,” Waverly fell to her knees, grabbing the redhead’s hand and holding it against her chest. “I’m right here.”</p><p>“I don’t know-” Nicole tried, the words spewing through her purple lips. Gordon moved away, leaving the two women alone. He wished he could save her, but there was nothing which could be done.</p><p>“Nic, don’t speak,” Waverly pleaded. “Save your strength, please.”</p><p>“But Waves,” She tried again. The brunette lay a kiss against her cold, trembling lips, desperate to make her quiet.</p><p>“Let me get you some water,” Waverly said. As she tried to stand, a limp hand latched onto her waist.</p><p>“Don’t go.” Tears spewed down Nicole’s cheeks and sunk into the dry dirt.. The youngest Earp reached forward, wiping her tears away with her smooth fingertips. “Don’t leave me. I don’t want to be alone”</p><p>“I’ll never leave you, Nic,” She repeated, squeezing the woman’s frigid hands even tighter. Her own eyelids drooped as the chilly wind nipped at her back. Ice cold liquid seeped into her pants, causing her to tremble as goosebumps fluttered against her skin. </p><p>“So cold,” Nicole sputtered. The redhead leaned forward, spitting up black phlegm onto the ghost white ground as the surrounding foliage decomposed. Waverly glanced at the sky, but instead of finding warm, puffy clouds, she found dark, heavy clouds. She peered over her shoulder as cement steps filled her vision. Her pupils twinkled with glee. </p><p>“Nicole,” Waverly hopped to her feet jumped to her feet. “I need you to stand. Can you do that for me? We’re back in the Ghost River Triangle.”</p><p>The redhead glanced over her shoulder; her face turning pale when her eyes fell upon the stairs. At the top of the cement stairs sat a large, black ape on the top of the stairs, smiling at her, tormenting her. </p><p>“He’s staring at me,” Nicole said, her face as pale as the snow beneath them. Waverly followed her line of sight.</p><p>“Nicole, there’s nothing there.” Waverly used her strength to thrust her to her feet. The redhead swayed before leaning on the shorter Earp. “We’ve just got a short walk to the homestead. Then Wynonna can take us to the hospital, okay?”</p><p>Nicole nodded her head as she took wild steps, her feet worse than Champ trying to pass a sobriety test. She looked back again, watching as the animal followed just feet behind them. </p><p>“He’s still following us.” She cried, worry infiltrating her mind. “Please make him stop.”</p><p>“See that light right there?” Waverly pointed through the darkness. “That’s the homestead, okay? We are almost there.”</p><p>The redhead tried to look behind them again, but Waverly shoved her chin and placed a kiss on her cheek, trying to distract her.</p><p>“I can’t wait to have some fresh tea when we get back,” She said, trying to sway her focus.</p><p>“I want some hot chocolate, though your sister will spike it,” She admitted. “Tea will probably help with the morning sickness.”</p><p>“Well, hopefully that’s over,” Waverly said, her eyes widening when her hand fell to her large, pregnant stomach.</p><p>“Waverly, he’s on me,” Nicole said. She separated from the younger woman, flailing her entire body as she tried to get the monkey-like creature off her back. Before she could take another breath, she fell like a sack of potatoes. </p><p>“Wynonna!” Waverly cried. They were so close to the homestead. She could hear her, she had to. </p><p>She looked up as she heard the porch door slam. But instead of her sister, her eyes met the weakened and definitely not immortal Doc Holliday. </p><p>“Waverly?” He puttered. He threw his half-smoked cigarette into the snow and raced down to her side. </p><p>“She’s hurt, Doc,” Waverly said as he fell on his knees to the ground, checking for Nicole’s pulse. “She needs to go to the hospital.”</p><p>Doc wrapped his arms under Nicole’s body and pulled her into his arms. With little strength, he carried her past the homestead door and to his bright red Cadillac.</p><p>“Waverly!” Champ called from the door. He raced down the stairs, kicking dirty snow at Waverly and Doc in his haste. Doc lay Nicole in the back seat, and Waverly shuffled inside. She pulled Nicole’s head into her lap, brushing her fingertips through her sweaty, greasy hair.</p><p>“I’m taking them to the hospital,” Doc informed the other man as he opened the front door. </p><p>“Do you think you should be driving, old man?”</p><p>“You either get in the front seat and call Wynonna or leave me alone to take care of this myself.”</p><p>Champ hesitated but nodded his head and shuffled to the passenger’s side door. Waverly rested her head against the cold, wet window, her eyes drooping shut from exhaustion. As she drifted to sleep, she heard Champ dial a number she could only assume was her sister.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>“Waverly is home!” Wynonna told her companions. The whiskey bottle slipped through her fingertips from the shock and spilled all over the car’s floor. “Champ and Doc are taking them to the hospital.”<br/>
</p><p> “Shit,” Jeremy called, unable to comprehend the news as his pupils devoured the news story flashing across his cell phone. “Mars escaped Black Rock!”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Cement tore into his over worn shirt and snow pooled into the bottom of his well ripped jeans. A door slammed above his head, echoing throughout the quiet Purgatory forest. His neck snapped toward the sound, watching with wide eyes as a fog rolled across the concrete stairs. As the fog disappeared, so did the entrance. The once elder man fell into the sloppy snow, dirty mud soaking into his entire backside. He pressed his palm into the liquid, his hand becoming numb and muddy. As he stood tall, his eyes ravaged the surrounding trees. He was not trapped any longer.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Phew they made it out- but has the fun just began? </p><p>Hope you enjoyed! Find me on Twitter at FailedShipper91</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Hit the Earth Like an Asteroid</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>No one noticed I was missing right?</p><p>Happy (belated) Thanksgiving to all you Americans!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 18</p><p>The elder man leaned against the city limits sign, a smirk tickling his features. He rolled onto the balls of his feet, stretching his unused muscles. His laceless feet brushed against the glimmering Canadian snow, as if the fresh bed was a blanket of warm dove feathers. His rough fingertips traced the name letters etched into the smooth sign.</p><p>“Welcome home,” He muttered, his eyes trailing the unpaved road. He needed to get out of sight, and quick. Who knows how many truckers would recognize his face? Who was he kidding? There was never any traffic in Purgatory. Looking over his shoulder, he eyed the tree lined forest as he contemplated his next direction. The sound of a wolf howling at the moon caused his mouth to spill open, flashing his dark yellow teeth. A bright pair of lights swarmed over the darkened hill, like an orderly funeral procession. The beam lit a direct path, lighting the way to his appearance. With a bated breath, he disappeared into the darkness of the night.</p><p> </p><p>“Where is she?” Wynonna rushed into the hospital, swaying underneath the weight of Jeremy’s arms.</p><p>“Let me go talk to a nurse,” Jeremy shoved the belligerent Wynonna onto the waiting room seat. Patients slumbering in the chairs groaned in frustration, awoken by the sloshed woman. The young man’s eyes locked with Robin’s. The jazz enthusiast spoke to the nurse, nodding over to the drooling, drunk woman. </p><p>“She’s here, Robin,” Wynonna said, a sloppy smile wrapped across her face. </p><p>“Okay, she is in room C-4.” Jeremy said, sliding into the seat beside her. “Family only, though.”</p><p>“What the fuck?” Wynonna swore. “You guys are as much family as I am.”</p><p>“Wynonna,” Robin tugged her from her seat. “Just go in there. And come and give us updates. Please.”</p><p>“Yes, please,” Jeremy thrusting her toward the door. He waved as the woman braced onto the handrails on the walls to keep her balance. </p><p>“Do you think she’s going to find her way?” </p><p>“I hope so,” Jeremy said as his boyfriend slouched into the seat beside him. “Do you think Champ is the room?”</p><p>“If I made a bet,” Robin’s eyes locked onto a distracted man in the corner. “It wouldn’t be fair.”</p><p>“He’s fucking eating McDonalds while his girlfriend is lying in a hospital bed!” Jeremy punched onto his thigh in frustration.</p><p>“Language, Jeremy, language.”</p><p>“Sorry,  I’ve spent too much time with Wynonna.”</p><p>“And she got you a drunk on the ride home from Black Rock?”</p><p>“Maybe… Just a little.”</p><p>“Which is why you didn’t drive,” Robin chuckle. The few patients around them sent glares their way. “Because you were just a little drink.”</p><p>“Don’t make a scene,” Jeremy sniped. “I don’t want Champ to notice us. Maybe if we are just quiet, he won’t.”</p><p> </p><p>“Baby girl!” Wynonna screamed into the darkened room. Her sister lay flat on the hospital bed, blankets tightly wrapped around her neck. “You look so good and tan! You must have spent all your days in paradise sun-bathing. What a life!”</p><p>Wynonna made herself comfortable on the small, hard plastic chair beside the bed. “We really missed you, baby girl. And you missed a lot.”</p><p>The eldest Earp tried to cross her legs, but she found herself flat on the floor on the cold, tile hospital floor.</p><p>“I hope someone washed that recently.” She used her hands to push herself up, then wiped her palms on her jeans. She looked at her sister, expecting to see her fast asleep. Instead, she locked her eyes with her sister’s wide pupils. She muttered. “You missed drinking, obviously.” </p><p>“Wynonna?” Waverly’s wide eyes flickered around the room, desperate to recognize her surroundings. The artificial light pooling from behind her burned into her pupils, forcing them to water. There was one thing missing. One extremely important thing. “Where’s Nicole?”</p><p>“No idea, baby girl,” She replied, sitting on the edge of the too small hospital bed.</p><p>“Wynonna, where is she?” Waverly sat in bed, causing blood to rush to her head. The monitor above her head beeped erratically as she gripped the white blanket in silent panic.  “I need to see her! I need to see for myself that she is okay.”</p><p>She catapulted off the side of the bed and shoved her sister. “You need to stop taking care of everyone else, Wave.”</p><p>Wild eyes flickered across the room, her pupils dilating and her heart racing, as if her brain was on fire. “No, Wynonna, you don’t understand-”</p><p>“Ms. Earp,” A woman in pink scrubs rushed through the privacy curtain and over toward the monitor. She pressed a few buttons and the incessant noise stop. “We told you to be calm. The stress is bad for the baby.”</p><p>“The baby?” Wynonna looked from the nurse to her sister, trying to connect the dots.</p><p>“I’m going to give you something to relax.”</p><p>“No,” Waverly commanded, tears welling in her eyes. Her brain synapses fired like a hyped up internal aurora borealis. She felt like there was a bomb exploding in her brain. “Wynonna-”</p><p>“Does she really need it?” Wynonna’s heart broke for her struggling sister. The nurse ignored the eldest Earp, puncturing the angelic skin with a syringe.</p><p>“Wynonna, please,” Waverly pleaded as her eyes blinked.  A shrill scream echoed against the sterile walls. She wanted to run, but she felt frozen in panic. Her arms flapped as she tugged on the wires attached to her body, as her brain turned into mush. “Please find Nicole. Please make sure she is okay.”</p><p>“Okay, baby girl, got it.” Wynonna agreed as her sister fell asleep. </p><p>“Hey,” Wynonna yelled at the nurse as she stepped into the hallway. “What do you mean, baby?”</p><p>“I cannot discuss anything with anyone besides her-”</p><p>“I’m her family, you dumbass.” She no longer had patience. </p><p>“Well, if you were her family, you would know she’s five months pregnant.” The woman answered without giving the eldest Earp her attention. “The baby is extremely small and malnourished. It’s weight and size are comparable to those at two months.”</p><p>“You’re kidding.” Wynonna breathed. “Is that why you gave her the sedative?”</p><p>“High blood pressure decreases the blood flow to the placenta.” The woman folded the laptop, turning her attention to her patient’s family. She locked onto the other woman’s worried, yet bloodshot eyes. “She will be asleep for a while. You should rest. It’s better than hanging around the hospital room.”</p><p>“Do you know where Nicole Haught is?” Wynonna asked. “I believe she got admitted at the same time as my sister.”</p><p>“Sorry, ma’am, I’m assuming she’s not family.”</p><p>“No,” Wynonna admitted. Her unfocused, dilated pupils swam through the emergency room hallway. Her eyes latched onto a redhead passing by on a stretcher. Not any redhead, her redhead. “Never mind.” </p><p>Wynonna didn’t wait for the other woman to respond. She scurried through the hall, following the runaway hospital gurney like it was a magnet, pulling her to it. She read the signs above her as she entered the Intensive Care Unit.</p><p>“Excuse me, ma’am can I help you?”</p><p>Wynonna paused and swore underneath her breath. </p><p>“Sorry, sir,” She walked closer to the security guard and patted his chest with as much flirt as swagger as she could muster. “I saw my cousin, and I wanted to see her to her room.”</p><p>He grabbed Wynonna’s hand and thrust it away. “Next time, try using the public entrance.”</p><p>“Sorry, sir,” She giggled. “It won’t happen again.”</p><p> </p><p>The eldest Earp walked away, standing tall and walking with confidence. She glanced through the blinds of each glass door, desperate to find her best friend. An enormous grin wiped across her face when her pupils latched onto a swatch of red hair contrasting against the pristine white sheets. Hanging her head low, she shoved open the glass door to the intensive care room with ease and slipped inside, closing the door behind her.</p><p>“Wow, Haught, I can truly say you look like shit,” Wynonna muttered to the lifeless figure. Her pale face blended in with the ghost white hospital sheets; if she was more drunk, she wouldn’t be able to find Nicole. “And usually I call you Haught shit, but you are not today.”</p><p>The eldest Earp slid into the second rock hard plastic chair of the day. “You need to wake up soon, Nicole. That’s right, I called you Nicole. That means I need business.”</p><p>Wynonna grimaced as she noticed the darkness highlighting the other woman’s eyes. Nicole’s bone structure outlined her face, no doubt because of a lack of nutrition in the garden.</p><p>“I need you to wake up, red. Don’t make me sing to you. I am drunk enough. Though I wish I was more drunk now.” She rubbed her own tired eyes with the back of her hand. She hoped her vision was like a kaleidoscope and the sheriff’s authentic form would appear before her. But no such luck. “I don’t know what happened in that garden, Nicole, but Waverly’s going mad. They had to give her a sedative because she wouldn’t calm down. They said it wasn’t good for the baby. Did you know she was pregnant?”</p><p>Wynonna quieted as a man in a white coat idled beside the door. She scooted her chair right in behind the curtain, desperate not to get noticed.</p><p>“How was the surgery, Dr. Stone?” The nurse asked as the sound of keys resounded throughout the empty hallway. “What are our next steps for treatment?”</p><p>The eldest Earp watched the shadow outside look over their shoulder, making sure the public was not listening. </p><p>“As I’m sure you read in the surgical notes, we have diagnosed her with sepsis. She has a nasty wound on her lower abdomen, which was clearly infected with signs of bacterial pus. She was having strong hallucinations until the moment we sedated her for surgery. We removed the infection tissue around the wound. Change the dressing every four hours.”</p><p>“Okay, ma’am,” He paused his typing for a split second, then continued again. </p><p>“Her blood platelet level was extremely low, so we gave her a transfusion.” Wynonna looked across Nicole’s body, noting the bright blue bruises lining both of her arms. “And we prescribed her with blood pressure medication for the time being, to help the blood flow to her organs.”</p><p>“How often do I need to give her that medication?”</p><p>“Start with twice a day,” She said. “With good affect, we hope to switch her to an extended release tablet, once we find the correct dose.”</p><p>“What is the goal?”</p><p>“I would like to transfer her by the end of the week,” She said. Wynonna released a heavy breath. “But not yet. We need to watch her breathing and platelet count for the next several hours. If it takes another dip, she will need dialysis.”</p><p>“I’ve noticed she has had no visitors,” His typing paused yet again. “Does she have a health care proxy on file?”</p><p>“Yes, she does,” The doctor said. “Administration tried to get a hold of her, but to no avail. We will need to get her approval before continuing with any more surgical treatment.”</p><p>“Stupid Shae,” Wynonna muttered under her breath. </p><p>“Vitals were steady about 20 minutes ago,” The doctor completed. “Complete a fresh round every hour on the hour.”</p><p>“Okay,” He agreed. Wynonna held her breath as the wheeled cart rolled right past the glass door and stopped just feet away at the next.</p><p>“Nicole, you couldn’t have married someone who picked up their phone?” Wynonna lectured. “She is a shit healthcare proxy. Maybe someone like me. I would be an exceptional proxy. When I wasn’t drunk… Or indisposed…” She looked over at the sleeping body. “Don’t look at me like that! It’s not all the time.”</p><p>Wynonna stood from her seat, scooting it toward the bed yet again. She snatched the manila folder from the door, her eyes devouring every inch. A name written in huge letters caught her eye. Listed under the health care proxy was a name that looked all too familiar; Waverly Earp.</p><p>“Well shit,” Wynonna sputtered. “What happens when your health care proxy is indisposed as well? Maybe if I pretend to be her, they will believe me? You don’t think they check ID’s do you?”</p><p>Her head snapped, glancing back at the bed. “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I guess you’re right. I’m way too tall to be Waverly.”</p><p> </p><p>“How are they?” Jeremy pleaded for answers. His brain felt like it was going to explode from overthinking and over worrying about the state of his two friends.</p><p>“Have a seat,” Wynonna gestured over to the coffee table in the waiting room. The bright lights still burned her retinas. She slid into the warm seat, just slightly more comfortable than those beside the hospital bed. “Who do you want first?”</p><p>“Whoever is in better condition,” Robin said, nodding his head at his boyfriend. “I think we need good news. A bit of bright side.”</p><p>“Where’s Champ?” Wynonna’s pupils darting around the room as she tried to spot her sister’s soon to be fiancé, though it was turning into an impossible game of Where’s Waldo. “Don’t tell me he didn’t stay?”</p><p>“We have no clue where he went,” Jeremy said. “We saw him check his phone and then he left.”</p><p>“Probably an offer from Stephanie Jones to suck his dick.”</p><p>“Wynonna!” Jeremy gasped, though Robin hid his chuckle behind his warm hands.</p><p>“Sorry, I can’t wait for Waverly to get her head out of her ass and kick him to the curb.” She grabbed the cup on the table and took a swig. Lukewarm coffee, nothing but the best in the hospital. “Waverly isn’t doing too bad, but she lost weight while in the garden. She looks malnourished. I’d be afraid she might crack if someone were to give her too tight of a hug.”</p><p>“Was she awake?” The newest member of the Scooby-Doo crew asked. “Were you able to talk to her?”</p><p>“She woke for a few seconds,” The brunette continued. “But she was hysterical. I tried to calm her down, but the nurses slapped her with a sedative.”</p><p>“I mean, that’s understandable,” Jeremy concluded. “She woke up in a strange place. And Nicole is gone. I would have freaked out, too.”</p><p>“Well, hold on to your tightie whities boys, because that’s not the best of it.” Wynonna chugged another bit of the cooling liquid, hoping the caffeine would rejuvenate her veins. “Waverly is pregnant.”</p><p>“What?” Jeremy and Robin’s eyes locked onto each other. Their pupils widened like a child on Christmas morning.</p><p>“Get ready to be godfathers, guys, unless Champ has anything to say about it.”</p><p>“Was she pregnant before?” Jeremy clenched his eyes shut, desperate to remember Waverly mentioning a pregnancy. Nothing. </p><p>“She must have been,” Wynonna nodded. “She is pretty pregnant now. Five months, I believe the nurse said.”</p><p>“But you said she’s five months, right?” The jazz lover quizzed. “Someone would have noticed before, right?”  </p><p>“I would think so,” The eldest Earp drummed her fingertips on the table. “The doctor said the baby was severely undergrown. She estimated the baby is five months old, but the baby’s growth resembles a two-month-old fetus.”</p><p>“That’s not possible,” Jeremy said, the scientist in him pulling out every well-known fact about babies in his brain.</p><p>“I figured it was because the mother is so malnourished.”</p><p>“I don’t know,” Jeremy theorized. “Maybe the garden caused the baby to mature, but it’s body to stay the same? We can research it at Black Badge.”</p><p>“Not now, though,” Wynonna commanded. “I need one of you to go sit with Nicole.”</p><p>“How is she doing?”</p><p>“Well, okay, here’s the bad,” Wynonna took a deep breath. “Not only is that gorgeous redhead malnourished, she also has sepsis.”</p><p>“Sepsis?” Robin looked over to Jeremy for an explanation. </p><p>“It’s what happens with an infection that doesn’t get cured.” Jeremy explained in the simplest terms he could. “A chemical gets released into the bloodstream and causes inflammation throughout other parts of the body. It can cause tissue and organ damage.”</p><p>“Well, it’s destroyed her tissues,” Wynonna said, crinkling her eyes shut to remember every word the doctor uttered. “They operated on her and took the dead tissue out.”</p><p>“So, she’s good, right?” Robin concluded. “They can treat her with antibiotics now?”</p><p>“I mean, we can hope it’s only at that stage,” Jeremy sighed. “She’s got to be in pain.”</p><p>“The doctors gave her a platelet confusion.”</p><p>“Transfusion,” The scientist corrected. </p><p>“Yes, that. And she might need dialysis.” </p><p>“Shit,” Robin said, his fingers finding Jeremy’s. </p><p>“And get this, her health care proxy is Waverly.”</p><p>Jeremy swore. “Waverly does not have the mental capacity to make life-changing decisions about Nicole right now.”</p><p>“Exactly.”</p><p>“What can we do?” Robin asked, his voice trembling with worry of his own.</p><p>“Please, one of you go sit with Nicole. The other can sit with Waverly and I.”</p><p>“You got it,” The shorter man nodded.</p><p>“I’ll go sit with Nicole,” Robin decided. “And then we can switch.”</p><p>“But we have one problem,” Wynonna admitted. “You need to pretend to be family. Nicole is in intensive care and Waverly is still in the emergency room ward.”</p><p>“You got it, cousin Robin to the rescue.”</p><p>“And foster brother Jeremy?” He smiled.</p><p> </p><p>The elder man fell to the ground crying in pain. He wrapped his warm hands around his cold, prickling feet. Each step through the treacherous Canadian snow felt like he was walking onto of a bed of knives. His soft fingertips ran through the hard, waxy skin lacing his feet. He could barely feel the touch of his own hand against his raw feet. </p><p>“Come on,” He muttered. He could not think about the pain.  He glanced around the darkened woods. The sounds of animals praying on others and wolves howling at the moon caused shivers across his frostbitten skin. A small streetlight in the distance invigorated his hopes. Just a half mile more and he would arrive at civilization. But could his body handle it? That was the question.</p><p>With an angry grunt, he stood to his feet, ignoring the sharp pains stabbing him with even the small amount of pressure he put on his heels. As his feet sank into the dirty snow, he hummed a nonsense tune, desperate to keep his mind off the pain striking him with each step.</p>
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